Have you received error code sec_error_expired_certificate? This error can appear when you attempt to connect to a website that uses an advanced website security feature called SSL and the necessary security checks cannot be completed successfully. Whilst this issue can be frustrating when you’re attempting to perform tasks such as loading your Gmail or Outlook account in a browser like Firefox or Internet Explorer, it can be fixed by updating a couple of security settings.
Method 1: Update Your Date and Time
Sometimes the sec_error_expired_certificate error code can appear when you attempt to connect to a secure website when your computer date and time is incorrect. If you believe that your date and time settings are wrong then you can use method 1 to quickly correct your settings and resolve the issue within minutes.
If you’ve attempted to update your date/time settings or you know that your settings are correct and you’re still dealing with the error code, please follow the steps in method 2.
To update your date and time on a Windows PC, follow the steps below.
Click the date/time in the bottom right corner of your screen
Click ‘Date and time settings’
First, ensure that the option to ‘set time automatically’ is turned on
Switch off the ‘set time automatically’ feature.
Change your date and time to the current time.
Switch on the ‘set time automatically’ feature.
Make sure you have selected the right time zone in the available drop-down box
This should cycle your date/time settings to make sure they are up to date.
You can now attempt to connect to your email provider or the previous website that was handing out the sec_error_expired_certificate error code.
Method 2: Re-configure Security Settings
By following method 2 you will be able to reconfigure your internet security settings completely so that you can resolve any potential issues that may have caused the issue.
First, you will need to reset your internet security settings. Follow the steps below.
Open the Start Menu
Search for ‘CMD’
Right click CMD and click ‘Run as administrator’
In the new CMD window, type regsvr32 softpub.dll and press enter.
A new window should pop-up. On this window, click the OK button when prompted.
Return to the CMD window and type Regsvr32 Wintrust.dll and press enter
Click the OK button when prompted
Return to the CMD window again and type Regsvr32 Initpki.dll and press enter
Click the OK button when prompted
After following the steps provided above you will need to configure some internet settings and reset your default browser. There are a lot of steps to follow so make sure to follow each step carefully. It should only take 3-5 minutes to complete.
Open the Start Menu
Search for Internet Options
A new window will open – Click on the General tab
Click the delete option under browsing history
Press OK when prompted
Click the Advanced tab
Click the ‘Reset…’ button
Click the Content tab
Click Clear SSL State
Click the Security tab
Click the ‘Trusted Sites’ option
Click the ‘Sites’ button
In the new pop-up window, uncheck the box that says ‘Require server verification’
In the ‘add this website’ field, enter the websites you had trouble connecting to and then click add
Now click ‘Close’ to close the pop-up window
In the security tab, Click the Enable Protected Mode checkbox
Click ‘Reset all zones to default level’
Click the Privacy tab
Click the sites button on the privacy tab
In the new pop-up window, type the website you previously had trouble connecting to and click Allow
Repeat the above for each website you are having trouble connecting to
Click OK to confirm your changes
Restart your internet browsers and attempt to re-connect to the website you previously had trouble connecting to
This should resolve your connection to any website you may have previously had issue connecting to. If you’re still having problems, it could be that the website is currently experiencing some internal issues. You may want to find their support channels or social media accounts to determine whether the issue may be on their side. If you know that the website you are connecting to is safe, you can choose to continue to the website by using Google Chrome. When visiting the website, choose to ignore the security risk by clicking ‘advanced options’ and clicking proceed anyway.
