>hey I still retain control of this and it hasn't been compromised. For the most part certificates have never provided this guarantee. What they do guarantee i

>hey I still retain control of this and it hasn't been compromised. For the most part certificates have never provided this guarantee. What they do guarantee is that A) the entity you're communicating with is in control of the private key and signed certificate that you expect B) your communication with that entity is secure from a man in the middle attack. And mostly B if you're visiting the site for the first time.