How the Web Works

🔗 Websites vs the internet

The internet is the network of connected computers. The World Wide Web (WWW) is the pages and sites you view with a browser, which ride on top of the internet. The web is one of many things the internet carries.

🏷️ Domain names

Computers find each other by IP address (numbers), but numbers are hard to remember. A domain name like safaricom.co.ke is a friendly label for a website. Names end in parts like .com, .org, or Kenya's .ke / .co.ke.

📖 DNS: the internet's address book

DNS (Domain Name System) turns a domain name into its IP address — like a phone contact list turning a name into a number. When you type a site, your device asks a DNS resolver 'what's the IP for this name?' and gets an answer, usually in milliseconds.

📨 Loading a page: request & response

Your browser sends an HTTP request to the site's server ('please send me this page'). The server replies with an HTTP response containing the page — text, images and code — which the browser puts together and shows you.

🔒 HTTP vs HTTPS

HTTPS is HTTP with encryption (TLS): the data is scrambled so others on the network can't read or change it. The padlock means the connection is private and the site proved its identity with a certificate. Never enter a password or pay on plain HTTP.

🛡️ Trust and certificates

A site's certificate is issued by a trusted authority and ties the domain to its owner. It's why the padlock matters — it helps confirm you're really talking to safaricom.co.ke and not an impostor. Phishing sites often use look-alike names, so check the address carefully.

Key points

• The internet is the network; the web is the pages you view in a browser.
• Computers find each other by IP address, but numbers are hard to remember.
• A domain name like safaricom.co.ke is a friendly label for a site.
• DNS turns that name into its IP address, like a contact list turning a name into a number.
• Your browser sends a request; the server sends back the page. Request and response.
• HTTPS adds encryption so others can't read or change your data.
• The padlock and a certificate help prove you're talking to the real site. Check the address!

Try it for real: Look under the hood of the web

• Open a website and click the padlock — view the certificate and see who it was issued to.
• With a grown-up, open Command Prompt/Terminal and run: nslookup safaricom.co.ke — note the IP address it returns.
• Compare two site addresses and explain which looks genuine and which could be a look-alike phishing name.