- Thread Author
- #1
Hello
An elderly friend whose computer I generally look after, has a problem when accessing some websites and is very worried about it. She has Windows XP Pro installed - SP3 and fully patched (she cannot afford to upgrade) and when trying to access some websites, which display the 'HTTPS' symbol, the HTTPS is coloured Red and has a red line through the symbol, together with indications that the website is unsafe. This has only recently occurred and previous accesses to these websites were OK.
She uses Google Chrome as her web browser, but trying Internet Explorer (8) the problems still exist - but to a lesser degree.
One of the websites is the well known 'Moonpig' site!
I spent some time yesterday trying to fix the problem but have been unable to find the cause. I had my laptop with me at the time and when accessing the 'problem' websites on my laptop, using her WiFi, there were no problems. So I concluded that the problem must be on her PC - not the websites......
I did some research on the Internet and noted that there was mention of 'Man in the Middle' attacks but I don't think this scenario applies in this case since I was using her WiFi/Internet connection on my laptop, without problems.
I carried out the following actions :
1. She has AVG Free edition installed and a full scan revealed nothing.
2. Ran a full scan using Malwarebytes which found nothing significant - only a few PUPs which were removed,
3. Ran CCleaner including the Registry option - re-booted but the problem still existed.
4. Checked in her Programs File for any unusual entries - none evident
5. Cleared cookies and cached information in the Chrome browser
6. Checked the SSL certificates of two 'problem' websites and they were valid (as expected!)
7. As a test, I added the full URL of 'moonpig' into the Trusted Sites, under Internet Properties/Security/Trusted Sites/Sites. This did not help.
8. I tried different settings under 'Security level for this zone' for both 'Internet and 'Trusted Sites' but again, these changes did not fix the problem. (I didn't really expect they would - since my friend would not have known anything about these settings !)
9. I also tried uninstalling Google Chrome and installing a fresh version from the Google website - made no difference.
However, I noted that although the latest version of Chrome is 5.1 (The version on my Win 7 Laptop) the version which I was able to download for XP was 49.0.2623.112 m.
I also noted some comments about Google Chrome : "Google Chrome version 42 flags as insecure, sites with SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificates that use SHA-1 instead of SHA-2." I wonder if this could be contributing to the problem?
10. I then tried a System Restore to an earlier configuration but again - no luck !
I can generally fix problems on several of my friends' computers and have been doing so for a number of years, but this problem has really got me beat !!! I wonder if anyone could suggest a cure for this problem, before I tear out what little hair I have left !! LOL!
My friend and I would be most grateful !
Apologies for a long posting......
An elderly friend whose computer I generally look after, has a problem when accessing some websites and is very worried about it. She has Windows XP Pro installed - SP3 and fully patched (she cannot afford to upgrade) and when trying to access some websites, which display the 'HTTPS' symbol, the HTTPS is coloured Red and has a red line through the symbol, together with indications that the website is unsafe. This has only recently occurred and previous accesses to these websites were OK.
She uses Google Chrome as her web browser, but trying Internet Explorer (8) the problems still exist - but to a lesser degree.
One of the websites is the well known 'Moonpig' site!
I spent some time yesterday trying to fix the problem but have been unable to find the cause. I had my laptop with me at the time and when accessing the 'problem' websites on my laptop, using her WiFi, there were no problems. So I concluded that the problem must be on her PC - not the websites......
I did some research on the Internet and noted that there was mention of 'Man in the Middle' attacks but I don't think this scenario applies in this case since I was using her WiFi/Internet connection on my laptop, without problems.
I carried out the following actions :
1. She has AVG Free edition installed and a full scan revealed nothing.
2. Ran a full scan using Malwarebytes which found nothing significant - only a few PUPs which were removed,
3. Ran CCleaner including the Registry option - re-booted but the problem still existed.
4. Checked in her Programs File for any unusual entries - none evident
5. Cleared cookies and cached information in the Chrome browser
6. Checked the SSL certificates of two 'problem' websites and they were valid (as expected!)
7. As a test, I added the full URL of 'moonpig' into the Trusted Sites, under Internet Properties/Security/Trusted Sites/Sites. This did not help.
8. I tried different settings under 'Security level for this zone' for both 'Internet and 'Trusted Sites' but again, these changes did not fix the problem. (I didn't really expect they would - since my friend would not have known anything about these settings !)
9. I also tried uninstalling Google Chrome and installing a fresh version from the Google website - made no difference.
However, I noted that although the latest version of Chrome is 5.1 (The version on my Win 7 Laptop) the version which I was able to download for XP was 49.0.2623.112 m.
I also noted some comments about Google Chrome : "Google Chrome version 42 flags as insecure, sites with SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificates that use SHA-1 instead of SHA-2." I wonder if this could be contributing to the problem?
10. I then tried a System Restore to an earlier configuration but again - no luck !
I can generally fix problems on several of my friends' computers and have been doing so for a number of years, but this problem has really got me beat !!! I wonder if anyone could suggest a cure for this problem, before I tear out what little hair I have left !! LOL!
My friend and I would be most grateful !
Apologies for a long posting......