Problem Description
Your browser is telling you one or more of the following:
- The site is insecure
- This connection is not private (Safari)
- Your connection isn't private (Chrome/Edge)
- NET::ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID
- Warning: Potential Security Risk Ahead (Firefox)
- You're using a Plesk Self Signed or Websavers certificate (for *.websavers.ca)
- Requested domain name does not match the server’s certificate
Problem Resolution
If this issue occurs using multiple browsers and from all devices:
If you have not purchased an SSL certificate you can either install a free Let's Encrypt certificate or purchase a commercial SSL certificate.
If you have already paid for a certificate for your domain, please ensure the certificate has been entered in to Plesk under the "SSL Certificates" control panel option and activated as per parts B and C in our SSL cert installation guide.
Once you have an SSL certificate for your domain, give the server 5-10 minutes to refresh settings and your valid certificate should then be in place when you visit your secure site.
If this issue occurs using only a single device and/or browser:
1. The date/time may be set wrong on the device. This is rare, but does occur on occasion still -- be sure to check the system time and date.
2. [Fall 2021] The device needs an update. If you've already ensured you have a working SSL certificate with the steps above, you're using a Let's Encrypt free certificate, and the device's date and time are correct, yet you are still experiencing this issue, then the problem is tied to a Let's Encrypt root certificate expiry. The device needs the new root certificates to successfully validate your website. The solution to this problem is to update the device's operating system (or if you're using Firefox, update Firefox) so that your system obtains an updated list of root SSL certificates. If you're unable to update your OS, you will not be able to view a large number of websites. Details here.
Troubleshooting
- You may need to clear your browser cache for the newly applied certificate to be picked up by your browser.
- If your browser still reports the site as insecure or provides mixed content warnings, this is because some resources on your site are still not using HTTPS at the start of the URL. See our guide to fixing this with WordPress; the general principles still apply for those not using WordPress.
