Chrome will Soon Stop Supporting Weak SHA-1 Certificates
Google plans to completely ditch the hash function by 2017.

Google hasn't had confidence in SHA-1's -- the algorithm used for encryption by most SSL certificates, which add the "s" to https:// -- ability to keep your info safe for a long time. Now, the company is determined to stop supporting it and has revealed when it plans to do so. According to Google's Online Security blog, Chrome version 48 (currently in beta) will show a message that says "Your connection is not private" starting early next year whenever it detects an SHA-1-based certificate issued on or after January 1st, 2016.

Mountain View says it's hoping you don't ever encounter the message, because Certificate Authorities are required to stop issuing SHA-1 certificates in 2016. Just in case, Google plans to continue issuing warnings until Chrome completely stops supporting SHA-1 on January 1st, 2017. When that day comes, a website that still uses the function will trigger a fatal network error.

SHA-1 has been growing weaker and more insecure everyday for a decade now, which is dangerous considering we tend to trust websites with "https://" in their URLs. Other browsers like Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge also plan to stop supporting it in an effort to encourage website owners to switch to more secure SHA-2 certificates as soon as possible.