Windows XP - I need help accessing secure Internet sites.

Note: Some of the following procedures or guidelines are from a third-party source and have not been validated by Gateway. These suggestions are intended to assist in resolving technical issues or creating potential workarounds for technical issues. While it is our goal to assist our customers in every way possible, Gateway is not responsible for any loss of data as a result of implementing the following procedures, workarounds, or suggestions.

  1. If the problem is with just one Web site, try to access another secure Web site. If there is not another secure Web site that you access on a regular basis, try this link: http://www.verisign.com/advisor/check.html.

  2. If the problem appears to be with one Web site, try the following steps:

    1. In Internet Explorer, from the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

    2. On the General tab, click Delete Cookies, and then click OK.

    3. Click Delete Files, and then click OK.

    4. Click Clear History.

    5. To save changes, click OK twice.

  3. If this does not resolve the problem, try adding the Web site to the list of trusted sites.

    1. In Internet Explorer, from the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

    2. Click the Security tab, and then click Trusted Sites.

    3. Click Default.

    4. Click Sites, and then type in the URL.

    5. Click Add, and then click OK twice.

  4. A common solution is to reregister the following DLLs used by Internet Explorer.

    1. From the Start menu, click Run. In the Run dialog box, type: Regsvr32 urlmon.dll. Press ENTER. Click OK at the confirmation message.

    2. In the Run dialog box, type: Regsvr32 softpub.dll. Press ENTER. Click OK at the confirmation message.
      In the Run dialog box, type: Regsvr32 wintrust.dll. Press ENTER. Click OK at the confirmation message.

  5. Check for viruses or Spyware. The most common cause of this kind of problem is Spyware or virus infections.

  6. Check for security software such as firewalls or pop-up blockers.

    1. Make sure that security software was not recently installed or parameters changed. This includes Internet security packages.

    2. If so, try temporarily disabling the new software. If that resolves the issue, consult the help files or documentation for a way to configure the software correctly.

    3. Try temporarily disabling any other security software such as firewalls (including the Windows Firewall), anti-virus, Ghost Surf, Pre-empt or pop-up blockers.

    4. To disable the Windows XP Service Pack 2 Pop-up Blocker:

      1. In Internet Explorer, from the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

      2. In Internet Options, click the Privacy tab, and then click to clear the Pop-up Blocker option.

    5. If temporarily disabling any of these fixes the issue, try configuring them to work properly with secure Web sites.

  7. Make sure that Internet Explorer settings are correctly set.

    1. Open Internet Explorer, and then from the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

    2. In the Internet Options dialog box, click the Security tab.

    3. On the Security tab, click each of the icons at the top of the window, and then click Default Level.

    4. Click the Content tab. Click ClearSSLState (if available), and then click OK.

    5. If Parental Controls are enabled, click Disable.

    6. Click Auto Complete. Click Clear Forms, and then click OK. Click Clear Passwords.

    7. Click OK twice to save the changes.

    8. In the Internet Options dialog box, click the Advanced tab. Under the Security section, select Use SSL 2.0 and Use SSL 3.0.

    9. Click the Connections tab. Click LAN Settings, and then click to clear everything in the Proxy Settings section.

    10. Disable third party browser extensions.

      If using Windows XP with Service Pack 2:

      1. Open Internet Explorer. In Internet Explorer, from the Tools menu, click Manage Add-Ons.

      2. Click to select an add-on, and then click Disable.

      3. Click OK.

      If not using Service Pack 2:

      1. Open Internet Explorer. In Internet Explorer, from the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

      2. On the Advanced tab, click to clear Enable Third Party Browser Extensions (requires reboot).

      3. Click OK, and then shut down Windows and restart the computer.

    11. Check the date and time. Secure Web sites typically have certificates that expire. If the date and time are incorrect, it can cause difficulties accessing secure Web sites.

    12. Run System Restore if the problem has just recently occurred.

    13. Make sure that the cipher strength is at least 128-bit.

      1. Open Internet Explorer.

      2. In Internet Explorer, from the Help menu, click About Internet Explorer.

      3. Check the Cipher Strength.

        1. If it is less than 128 bit but greater than 0, download the Internet Explorer High Encryption Pack from the Microsoft Web site.

        2. If the cipher strength is 0 bit, follow the instructions at this Web link on the Microsoft Web site.

    14. Check if more than one user account is affected.

      1. If there is another account on the computer, try accessing secure Web sites using that account. If there is not another account, create one and then try accessing secure Web sites.
      2. If the other account works, then try resetting the following registry keys:

        • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders should be set to: C:\Documents and Settings\user1\Application Data.
        • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders should be set to: %userprofile%\Application data.

      3. Log out and then log back in.

      4. If this does not fix the difficulty, copy all of the user's documents (including e-mail) to the new account and then delete the old account.

    15. If possible, try repairing Internet Explorer.

      1. From the Start menu, click Run. In the Run dialog box, type: sfc /scannow. Press ENTER.

      2. Click to select Internet Explorer, click Add/Remove, and then click the Repair option.

        Note: If Internet Explorer is not listed, the operating system is using the original version of Internet Explorer. Try downloading the latest version from the Microsoft Web site.

    16. Try downloading a tool to re-register all the Internet Explorer .dlls. McAfee has a utility called ieregfix.bat. It attempts to repair Internet Explorer by re-registering all of the respective dlls.

    17. Reregister all of the Internet Explorer and security related DLLs that have not been already registered.

      1. From the Start menu, click Run.

      2. In the Run dialog box, type the following commands. A confirmation message appears after each one. Click OK when prompted.

          Regsvr32 urlmon.dll (if not already tried in part 1)
          Regsvr32 softpub.dll (if not already tried in part 1)
          Regsvr32 wintrust.dll (if not already tried in part 1)
          Regsvr32 initpki.dll
          Regsvr32 dssenh.dll
          Regsvr32 rsaenh.dll
          Regsvr32 gpkcsp.dll
          Regsvr32 sccbase.dll
          Regsvr32 slbcsp.dll
          Regsvr32 mssip32.dll
          Regsvr32 cryptdlg.dll

      3. If running Windows XP service pack 2, from the Start menu, click Run. In the Run dialog box, type: iexplore /rereg. Press ENTER.

      4. Check for hardware difficulties. If a router is being used, try bypassing the router. If a cable/DSL modem is used, try power-cycling the modem.

      5. If running Windows XP, check that the cryptographic service is running.

        1. From the Start menu, click Run.

        2. In the Run dialog box, type: services.msc. Press ENTER.

        3. Locate the cryptographic service, right-click and then from the menu click Properties.

        4. If the service is not running, change the startup type to Automatic, and then click the Start button.

        5. Click Apply.

        6. If prompted, click Restart Windows.

      6. Check to see if FIPS compliant encryption is enabled (Windows XP Professional only). Some secure Web sites may not be accessible if this is enabled. To disable it, try the following steps.

        1. Open Control Panel.

        2. In Control Panel, open Performance and Maintenance, and then click Administrative Tools.

        3. In the Administrative Tools window, double-click Local Security Policy.

        4. Expand Local Policies, and then click Security Options.

        5. In the right pane, under Policy, double-click System cryptography: Use FIPS compliant algorithms for encryption, hashing, and signing, and then click Disabled.

      7. Try Windows Updates from the Microsoft Web site.

      If following the above procedures did not resolve your problem, please contact Gateway through one of the following methods: