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having the SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER problem, on all sites. Chrome too, but microsoft Edge works. Just started after latest windows 10 update this morning

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  • 4 have this problem
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  • Last reply by cor-el

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after a windows 10 update last night/this morning, getting above error on just about every site in Firefox and Chrome, but not Microsoft Edge. Any help appreciated.

after a windows 10 update last night/this morning, getting above error on just about every site in Firefox and Chrome, but not Microsoft Edge. Any help appreciated.

Chosen solution

You can check the date and time and time zone in the clock on your computer: (double) click the clock icon on the Windows Taskbar.


You can check if there is more detail available about the issuer of the certificate.

  • click the "Advanced" button show more detail
  • click the blue SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER message to show the certificate chain
  • click "Copy text to clipboard" and paste the base64 certificate chain text in a reply

If clicking the SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER text doesn't provide the certificate chain then try these steps to inspect the certificate.

  • open the Server tab in the Certificate Manager
    • Options/Preferences -> Privacy & Security -> Certificates: View Certificates -> Servers: "Add Exception"
  • paste the URL of the website (https://xxx.xxx) in it's Location field.

Let Firefox retrieve the certificate -> "Get Certificate"

  • click the "View" button and inspect the certificate

You can see detail like the issuer of the certificate and intermediate certificates in the Details tab.

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All Replies (5)

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Hi, give this a try please :

Certain Firefox problems can be solved by performing a Clean reinstall. This means you remove your Firefox program files and then reinstall Firefox. This process does not remove your Firefox profile data (such as bookmarks and passwords), since that information is stored in a different location.

To do a clean reinstall of Firefox, please follow these steps: Note: You might want to print these steps or view them in another browser.

  1. Download the latest Desktop version of Firefox from mozilla.org (or choose the download for your operating system and language from this page) and save the setup file to your computer.
  2. After the download finishes, close all Firefox windows (or open the Firefox menu New Fx Menu and click the close button Close 29).
  3. Delete the Firefox installation folder, which is located in one of these locations, by default:
    • Windows:
      • C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox
      • C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox
    • Mac: Delete Firefox from the Applications folder.
    • Linux: If you installed Firefox with the distro-based package manager, you should use the same way to uninstall it - see Install Firefox on Linux. If you downloaded and installed the binary package from the Firefox download page, simply remove the folder firefox in your home directory.
  4. Now, go ahead and reinstall Firefox:
    1. Double-click the downloaded installation file and go through the steps of the installation wizard.
    2. Once the wizard is finished, choose to directly open Firefox after clicking the Finish button.

More information about reinstalling Firefox can be found here.

WARNING: Do not use a third party uninstaller as part of this process. Doing so could permanently delete your Firefox profile data, including but not limited to, extensions, cache, cookies, bookmarks, personal settings and saved passwords. These cannot be easily recovered unless they have been backed up to an external device! See Back up and restore information in Firefox profiles.

Please report back to say if this helped you!

Thank you.

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Use this link only please : https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/

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There is security software like Avast, Kaspersky, BitDefender and ESET that intercept secure connections and send their own certificate.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/firefox-cant-load-websites-other-browsers-can

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/firefox-and-other-browsers-cant-load-websites

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/secure-connection-failed-error-message

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/connection-untrusted-error-message

http://kb.mozillazine.org/Error_loading_websites


  • uses an invalid security certificate SSL_ERROR_BAD_CERT_DOMAIN
  • configured their website improperly

How to troubleshoot the error code "SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER" on secure websites https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/troubleshoot-SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER

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Thanks, but, this didn't fix it.

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Chosen Solution

You can check the date and time and time zone in the clock on your computer: (double) click the clock icon on the Windows Taskbar.


You can check if there is more detail available about the issuer of the certificate.

  • click the "Advanced" button show more detail
  • click the blue SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER message to show the certificate chain
  • click "Copy text to clipboard" and paste the base64 certificate chain text in a reply

If clicking the SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER text doesn't provide the certificate chain then try these steps to inspect the certificate.

  • open the Server tab in the Certificate Manager
    • Options/Preferences -> Privacy & Security -> Certificates: View Certificates -> Servers: "Add Exception"
  • paste the URL of the website (https://xxx.xxx) in it's Location field.

Let Firefox retrieve the certificate -> "Get Certificate"

  • click the "View" button and inspect the certificate

You can see detail like the issuer of the certificate and intermediate certificates in the Details tab.