Web Browsers - Security Certificate Errors
Explains what the secure connection failed error is and how to fix it.
Note: Many web sites and applications on campus are signed using certificates provided by ipsCA, a Certificate Authority that provides certificates to educational institutions. The root certificate for ipsCA expires on December 29, 2009. This means that web browsers which are not using the new ipsCA root certificate will encounter one of the errors shown below when viewing a secure page that uses an ipsCA certificate.
Here are a few browser specific security certificate errors:
Firefox
Internet Explorer
Troubleshooting
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Often the cause of the problem is your system clock is off. This often happens after a power out. To reset the system clock, see one of the following documents:
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This can be a legitimate security warning if your computer is infected with malware or you have visited a compromised site. If your system time is correct and you are receiving this warning, it is recommend you run a full virus scan. See the following document: Windows Defender - Running an Antivirus Scan
- There is a possiblity that the certificate has expired. If the site is on the wisc.edu domain and is known to be legitimate, this is most likely the issue and an exception can usually be safely set. However, there may be other causes for this error as given above. If you are certain that the page you are accessing is legitimate and that your computer is secure, you can get around this issue by adding an exception.
Firefox 3.5
- Click on I Understand the Risks.
- Click Add Exception... to open the "Add Security Exception" window.
- Click Confirm Security Exception.