How to Fix ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID in Chrome

Chrome is the best choice for both users and web developers. It’s because of its simplicity and user-friendliness. Also, it’s the most annoying due to the many errors that it causes compared to other browsers. My friend runs a website, and he reported having ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID error all the time.

So on the hunt for reasons, we figured out that the issue for ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID is with the certificate used to authenticate the SSL connections. Because websites use security layers known as Secure Socket Layer(SSL) to authenticate traffic to them.

Although most of the time, the error doesn’t happen with certificate misconfiguration. There are many factors contributing to the issue. Especially when the same website loads perfectly on different browsers like Firefox or edge, now you’ve attached yourself to the chrome browser and wouldn’t want to switch to another browser. So we’ve got you some solutions that you can try to fix this yourself.

How to fix ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID in Chrome?

So as I mentioned above, always doesn’t depend on the certificate. Let’s discuss some other factors and their solutions.

Note: If you’re connected to a public wifi network such as an airport that requires signing in, you should sign in first in order to access the website. Open any website with “http://” as the starter, for example, http://example.com. And as the sign-in window opens, sign into the network.

Solution 1: Checking Date and Time

Date and time may seem to be a simple thing, but it can cause some series issues. Mismatch on time could cause errors, especially on networks and the internet. So, you can set the time to get updated automatically from the settings instead of changing them manually.

To do so:

1. Open control panel from start/ using the Run command “Control”.
2. Click on Clock and Regions and click on “Set time and date” under Date and time.
3. Now, click on Change settings and provide an admin password if prompted.
4. From the pop-up, click on Synchronize (Tick mark), and provide details of the server either time.windows.com or time.google.com
5. Click on ok, and now the time will get change as per the server.

Solution 2: Extensions interference

If you have many extensions installed, they will cause the error. Multiple extensions related to the network such as Adblock, VPN, or Online Security will cause series issues when running simultaneously. So to find out and solve the issue,

1. Open an incognito tab on chrome by pressing Ctrl+Shift+N (simultaneously).
2. Open the same page inside the incognito tab.
3. If the page loads up fine, then the issue is related to extensions.
4. Disable all extensions one by one and test if the page loads.
5. Permanently remove the extension causing the problem or temporarily keep it disabled.

Solution 3: Update OS and Chrome

Keeping things up to date is vital, especially on systems used to connect to the internet. Because update brings bug fixes and security fixes for the software.

1. Update your windows system by going into Settings > Update and recovery > Check for updates.
2. For macOS Go to System Preferences > Software update.
3. For Linux based systems, use the built-in update manager or run the command “Sudo apt-get install upgrade.” This option may vary according to the distribution.

Now its time to update Google Chrome.

1. Go to settings in chrome by clicking in the three dots icon to the top right corner.
2. Scroll down and click on About Chrome.
3. Once the page opens, chrome will automatically check for updates and notify you if any update is available.

Solution 4: Temporarily disable anti-virus software

Some anti-virus software may prevent you from accessing websites in order to protect you from threats. If you think that the website is safe and this is a false alarm, you can check if the page opens after temporarily disabling the anti-virus software. The process varies according to the antivirus brand or the service provider. Refer to manuals or tutorials available in specific to the brand in order to disable them.

But we can guide you for the common Windows Defender.

1. Open windows defender and click on Virus & Threat protection.
2. Click on manage settings under Virus and threat protection settings.
3. Now disable real-time protection.

Now we have to disable the windows firewall. To do so,

1. Open Windows Security app
2. From the left side, select Firewall and network protection.
3. Disable the windows defender firewall using the toggle switch.

Solution 5: Contact the website admin

If you cannot open the webpage on any other browser, this means the page has some problems. It has some security-related issues and has to be fixed. There is nothing you can do at this point than to contact the admin and report the issue. Admin may require to install certificates for their websites. It’s their task, you need not worry. Just report and wait.

Conclusion

So, to conclude this article, we can see that solving ERR_CERT_COMMON_NAME_INVALID error in Chrome is easy. But you should have patience and a little bit of time. If you don’t have any time or if the work is very urgent, you can use another browser to get the work done temporarily.

If still these solutions doesn’t work for you, you can contact the developers of Google to get support. Also, try reinstalling the browser again and perform a reboot. Hope you have fixed the issue. Happy web surfing.