Each pair of keys consists of a public key and a private key. The public key is made public by distributing it widely. When a user conducts a secure session, the data is encrypted using the private key, and can only be decoded with the public key. All you need to access Ovid's secure server is the above secure access url and an SSL compliant browser like Netscape Navigator 3.0 or higher, or Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 or higher. Because encryption and decryption take time, users may notice a modest decrease in speed when accessing any secure server.
Secure access is available to all customers at no additional cost.