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Why does it say: insecure connection on secure websites?

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On certain sites that should be secure, it says 'insecure connection' This has been happening for a month or more.

I tried force stopping my anti malware software to see if it was causing this and it wasn't. I also tried disabling a add on I recently installed and it wasn't causing the problem either. This concerns me because this may compromise my security.
On certain sites that should be secure, it says 'insecure connection' This has been happening for a month or more. I tried force stopping my anti malware software to see if it was causing this and it wasn't. I also tried disabling a add on I recently installed and it wasn't causing the problem either. This concerns me because this may compromise my security.

Chosen solution

If you're worried about websites being infected, etc., you can always use a website scanner like https://sitecheck.sucuri.net/ to check for malware or website reputation website like https://www.mywot.com to see if anybody else had problems with it. WOT is also an addon for firefox, but I don't think it's available for android yet.

As for "The Free Dictionary", I've been using it for years and never had problems with it. Though, if you want to use it on a smartphone, you should probably consider getting its app from the Google Play store instead.

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All Replies (11)

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A lot of websites is designed to only use secure connection for sensitive info - while logging in, for money transactions, etc. You can read these articles for details:

  1. Mixed content blocker in Firefox for Android
  2. "This Connection is Untrusted" error message appears - What to do
  3. Secure connection failed and Firefox did not connect
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Thank you! Does that mean that the login is secure and the rest of the website has an insecure connection because it's not dealing with sensitive info? I see this message on websites that should be secure. When I see it does that mean the website is no longer safe?

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No. "Secure connection" over https (encrypted protocol) means that unless somebody directly has control over your device, they won't be able too see what you're doing (viewing/writing, etc.). That doesn't however mean that websites using http put you at risk. Probably that less than 0.01% of websites are using https at all times. Why? Because there's simply no need to. Take Amazon, for instance - the website uses the "unsecure" http in most places, but when you use the search feature or go to your basket, it'll automatically use the "secure" https instead.

Main security problems might arise if you're using public wifi - sharing a network puts you at risk at having others in the same network monitoring your activity. You can use vpn to put on an additional layer of protection and remain safe in such instances.

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On certain sites that should be secure, it says 'insecure connection'

What sites? Please provide a link.

What is the exact error you get?

Is this about Firefox for Android or Desktop?

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Thank you very much for your time and reply.

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This is about Firefox for Android.

When I click on the upper left hand corner in the address bar it says: Insecure connection. It doesn't say that on this site. This site has a green lock in the upper left hand corner of the address bar, and it says : Secure connection. These are the links to the sites that say insecure connection. http://www.howtogeek.com

http://dictionary.reference.com/ http://www.merriam-webster.com

These are the two websites that concern me because I don't know if it's safe to log in. http://www.girlsgogames.com http://www.thefreedictionary.com

I'm not sure I understand what Grad is saying even though he did a good job at explaining it to me, but I think he's saying that it's not always going to say that the connection is secure unless it's dealing with sensitive information.

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I'm sorry if you get this reply twice, or if you got a reply intended for someone else. I think I got mixed up and posted my replies in the wrong place. That's why I'm reposting them again. Thank you very much for your time and reply.

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I'm sorry if you get this reply twice, or if you get a reply intended for someone else. I think I got mixed up before and posted the replies in the wrong place. That's why I'm reposting them again.

This is about Firefox for Android.

When I click on the upper left hand corner in the address bar it says: Insecure connection. It doesn't say that on this site. This site has a green lock in the upper left hand corner of the address bar, and it says: Secure connection. These are the links to the sites that say insecure connection. http://www.howtogeek.com

http://dictionary.reference.com/ http://www.merriam-webster.com

These are the two websites that concern me because I don't know if it's safe to log in.

http://www.girlsgogames.com http://www.thefreedictionary.com

I'm not sure I understand what Grad is saying even though he did a good job at explaining it to me, but I think he's saying that it's not always going to say that the connection is secure unless it's dealing with sensitive information.

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Secure sites all start with https:// in the URL, i.e. communication with the server is encrypted. The sites you mentioned all start with http://, i.e. communication with the server is in the clear, and hence they are 'not secure'.

Also see https://blog.mozilla.org/tanvi/2016/01/26/updated-firefox-security-indicators/

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Chosen Solution

If you're worried about websites being infected, etc., you can always use a website scanner like https://sitecheck.sucuri.net/ to check for malware or website reputation website like https://www.mywot.com to see if anybody else had problems with it. WOT is also an addon for firefox, but I don't think it's available for android yet.

As for "The Free Dictionary", I've been using it for years and never had problems with it. Though, if you want to use it on a smartphone, you should probably consider getting its app from the Google Play store instead.

Modified by Grad

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Thank you very much for your help and time.