Twitter on Tuesday said it would provide users with the option to encrypt their accounts at all times via HTTPS technology.
"This will improve the security of your account and better protect your information if you're using Twitter over an unsecured Internet connection, like a public WiFi network, where someone may be able to eavesdrop on your site activity," Twitter said in a blog post.
Specifically, Twitter will allow users to leave a technology known as HTTPS activated at all times. HTTPS keeps data encrypted as it travels between your Web browser and servers and is mostly used for things like banks and credit card company Web sites.
Sites that deal with sensitive personal information have typically used HTTPS during the sign-in process to protect password information and then reverted back to HTTP afterwards because full encryption can sometimes slow down your experience on that site. But as more and more people sign on to services like Twitter on public or insecure networks, it makes it easy for cyber criminals to hack in and gain access to personal account information.
In the future, Twitter said it hopes to make HTTPS the default setting. The company has already made it the default setting "for a number of clients and activities." Twitter currently uses HTTPS for everyone during the sign-in process and on the Twitter for iPhone and iPad mobile apps.
To activate, visit the settings page and check the box next to "Always use HTTPS" at the bottom of the page. Turning on this setting will not work automatically via a mobile browser. You must type in https://mobile.twitter.com, but Twitter said it is working on a solution.
"If you use a third-party application, you should check to see if that app offers HTTPS," Twitter said.
The announcements comes several weeks after New York Sen. Charles Schumer called on Internet companies like Amazon, Twitter, and Yahoo to encrypt their users' accounts in order to prevent hackers from gaining access to personal information over Wi-Fi networks.
In January, Facebook introduced the option to encrypt your Facebook session at all times, as well as an easier account authentication process. Hotmail has a similar option. Last year, Google announced that it would encrypt Gmail at all times, not just during sign-on, and make the process an opt-out feature rather than opt-in.