How Important is Extended Validation?

In the old days of the internet, which could be as little as a 6-7 years ago, society may have had a chance at arguing whether or not an Extended Validation (EV) SSL certificate was really worth it? It used to be like: Do people recognize it? Do they even know what it means? But in today's world of one high-profile attack after another, there's no chance! The data doesn't lie, it's been proven 10 times over that more and more people have grown to recognize, respect & trust websites backed by the green address bar. EV SSL certificates are now the ONLY way to go when taking security seriously and trying to be taken seriously online…I mean it is green, and green means go in every language ya know!

Yeah, it might take a few extra steps to get, but isn't that kind of the point? If you're a legitimate company, you want to be able to differentiate yourself from the non-legitimate companies, right? And with all the fraud & phishing going on nowadays, it cannot be ignored any longer. Why would you ever want to use the same solutions fraudsters can also get? You wouldn't. If the cost is your worry, you should cut costs on some other less volatile things. You got one brand, one reputation and one chance to give the best impression possible…don't blow it.