"Not secure" warning in the browser

What causes the "Not secure" warning in browsers and how to get your site back to secure HTTPS.

If visitors see a "Not secure" warning, or a changed security icon, next to your web address, it can make your site look untrustworthy — even if it's perfectly safe to use. Don't worry: this is usually a fixable technical issue, not a sign that anything bad has happened.

Quick summary

The warning means your site's SSL certificate — the technology that encrypts connections and lets the browser mark your site as secure — is missing, expired, or misconfigured. Contact us and we'll renew or reinstall it. In most cases this is resolved within a few hours.

What is SSL and why does it matter?

SSL is the technology behind HTTPS — the "S" in https://. It encrypts the connection between your visitor's browser and your website so no one can intercept the data.

A note on names: SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer, and it was superseded years ago by a newer protocol called TLS (Transport Layer Security). Browsers and servers use TLS today, but almost everyone — hosts, browsers, certificate sellers and us — still says "SSL certificate", so treat the two terms as the same thing.

Browsers show a security indicator next to the web address. In Chrome it's the icon immediately to the left of the address — Chrome calls it the security status symbol, and it isn't a padlock — and Chrome changes it when a site may be unsafe. When SSL is missing or broken, you'll see one of these:

A "Not secure" label next to the web address (both Chrome and Safari use that wording)
In other browsers, their own changed icon or wording next to the address
A full-page warning visitors have to click past before they can continue — in Chrome, "Your connection is not private"

Full red warning page?

A certificate problem produces a plain full-page warning. A full-page red screen means something different and more serious: Google Safe Browsing has flagged the site as unsafe, which usually points to malware or a hack rather than an expired certificate. Contact us straight away either way — but tell us which of the two you're seeing.

Common causes

Cause	What it looks like
Expired SSL certificate	Warning appeared suddenly, was fine before
SSL not installed	Happened after switching to a new host or domain
Mixed content	Some resources (a stylesheet, a script) are still linked over HTTP, so the browser blocks them and part of the page breaks
Domain changed	Certificate covers the old domain, not the new one
Self-signed certificate	Warning present since the site launched

Step 1 — Note the exact warning message

Different error messages mean different things:

"Your connection is not private" — Chrome's full-page message for an SSL problem
"Not secure" — what Chrome and Safari show next to the web address. Firefox and Edge each use their own wording for the same problem
ERR_CERT_DATE_INVALID — the certificate has expired, isn't valid yet, or the device's clock is wrong
ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID — the certificate doesn't match the domain being visited
ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID — the certificate was signed by an authority the browser doesn't trust, which includes self-signed certificates

Write down the exact message and take a screenshot.

Step 2 — Check the certificate details

In Chrome, select the icon immediately to the left of the web address (or the "Not secure" text). That shows a summary of the site's privacy, cookies and site data, and site settings.

In Safari on a Mac, choose Safari, then Connection Security Details from the menu bar. If a certificate warning is already on screen, click Show Certificate on the warning instead.

Check the expiry date. If it expired in the past, the certificate needs renewing.

Check the domain the certificate covers. It should match your site's URL exactly (including or excluding "www" depending on your setup).

Step 3 — Contact us

Certificates are installed on the server, not inside WordPress, so this is fixed in your hosting account rather than from the WordPress dashboard.

Your site URL
A screenshot of the error
The exact error message (from Step 1)
Whether this appeared suddenly or has always been there

We'll renew, reinstall, or reconfigure the certificate and verify it's working across all pages.

Using Cloudflare or another proxy?

If your site uses Cloudflare (a service that routes traffic through its network for speed and security), the SSL configuration involves both Cloudflare and your hosting. Let us know if you use Cloudflare so we can address both sides.

Common questions

My site shows secure on some pages but not others.

This is usually a "mixed content" problem. The page itself loads over HTTPS, but something on it is still linked to an insecure http:// address. Browsers handle the two kinds differently: a plain image, video or audio file gets quietly upgraded to HTTPS, while everything else — stylesheets, scripts, fonts, and images loaded as a set of sizes for different screens — is blocked outright. That's why the usual symptom is part of a page looking broken. We need to update those links. Contact us with the affected pages.

I installed a new SSL certificate but the warning is still showing.

Your browser may be displaying a cached version. Try a hard refresh (in Chrome, Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows or Cmd+Shift+R on a Mac). If the warning persists, there may be a configuration step that wasn't completed — contact us and we'll verify.

How often do SSL certificates expire?

Sooner than they used to, and the limit keeps dropping. Under the rules browsers enforce, a certificate issued today can't be valid for more than 200 days, and that cap falls to 100 days for certificates issued from March 2027. Many are issued for far less than the maximum. Good hosting setups renew them automatically. If yours expired, the auto-renewal may have failed — we'll fix it and set up auto-renewal.

Is my site actually unsafe to use while this warning is showing?

For most sites, the warning means data isn't encrypted — but the site isn't actively harmful. That said, it damages visitor trust significantly and should be resolved quickly.

Need a hand?

If you're stuck, email support@chykalophia.com and we'll help. Include your website address and a screenshot if you can.

"Not secure" warning in the browser

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