Have you encountered the frustrating ‘ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH’ error while trying to access a website? It can feel like hitting a dead end.
This error can prevent you and your visitors from accessing your WordPress site, which is a significant issue.
Not only is this situation extremely frustrating, but it can also make your website appear unprofessional and raise serious concerns about security.
Unfortunately, this error impacts approximately 2% of all SSL-enabled websites, affecting a large number of users globally. It typically occurs due to outdated or misconfigured software on either the website or the user’s device.
In this article, we will provide expert solutions to help you diagnose and resolve the ‘ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH’ error on your WordPress site, ensuring a smooth and secure experience for all visitors.
What Is the ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH Error?
We strongly recommend that all WordPress site owners install an SSL certificate to enhance the security of their website data.
An SSL certificate establishes the secure connection necessary for accepting payments in your online store and offers additional protection for your users.
Recommended:Explore our comprehensive guide on obtaining a free SSL certificate or purchasing a discounted SSL certificate from Namecheap.
SSL, or Secure Sockets Layer, and TLS, or Transport Layer Security, are protocols that utilize certificates to verify the identity of the websites users are interacting with.
When you access a secure website, your browser automatically verifies the validity and currency of the SSL certificate, along with the protocols in use.
If there is a problem, you may encounter an SSL error such as ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH.
This error occurs when your browser does not recognize the version of the SSL protocol in use or when the SSL certificate is improperly configured.
This issue may arise if you are using an outdated web browser that does not support the latest TLS protocols, or if the website’s SSL certificate or software is outdated or mismatched.
Now, let’s explore some effective steps to resolve the ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error in WordPress:
- Checking Your Website for SSL Errors
- When the Issue Lies Elsewhere
Checking Your Website for SSL Errors
Begin by scanning your WordPress website for SSL errors to identify issues that may lead to the ‘ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH’ error.
A simple way to check for SSL issues is to use an online tool like the Qualys SSL Labs SSL Server Test. Enter your website’s domain name and click the ‘Submit’ button.
The tool will conduct a comprehensive test of your website, which may take a few minutes. Once completed, a detailed report on your site’s SSL certificate will be available.
In the image below, you can see the results from a scan of CanadaCreate.com.
The report indicates that the CanadaCreate SSL certificate is valid, trusted, and supports the latest TLS protocol, TLS 1.3, showcasing an excellent SSL test result.
Scroll down to the Configuration section of the report for more details.
This section will display the supported versions of the TLS protocol. In this instance, both TLS 1.2 and TLS 1.3 are supported.
It’s crucial to ensure that older protocols are not in use, as they have known security vulnerabilities.
If your test results resemble this, it indicates that the ‘ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH’ error is not caused by the website itself. You can scroll to the final section of this guide to learn how to troubleshoot the software on your computer.
Conversely, here is a screenshot from a scan that identified SSL errors. The errors are summarized at the top of the report, with additional details provided below.
You can access a page with comprehensive notes about an error by clicking the ‘MORE INFO »’ link.
If the SSL test report for your website highlights any SSL errors, you can follow these guidelines to resolve them.
Your Site Uses Outdated TLS 1.0, TLS 1.1, or RC4 Cipher Suite
Outdated TLS protocols such as TLS 1.0 and TLS 1.1 should not be used due to their security vulnerabilities, and modern web browsers have ceased to support them.
The same applies to the RC4 cipher suite. A cipher suite consists of a set of algorithms used to secure your website with TLS. However, the RC4 version has been deemed insecure and should not be utilized.
Reputable WordPress hosting providers do not use insecure versions of the TLS protocol or cipher suite.
If your website is running on outdated versions, contact your hosting provider to enable TLS 1.2 or TLS 1.3. Additionally, ensure that you switch to AEAD cipher suites, specifically AES-GCM.
Consider switching to a reputable hosting provider such as Bluehost or SiteGround.
SSL Certificate Name Mismatch Detected
An SSL certificate verifies the authenticity of your website, so the domain name on the certificate must match your website’s domain. A discrepancy between these names is referred to as an ‘SSL certificate name mismatch.’
If you encounter this error in your SSL report, it will outline possible causes:
- The website does not utilize SSL but shares an IP address with another site that does.
- The website is no longer active, yet the domain still points to the previous IP address where a different site is hosted.
- The website employs a content delivery network (CDN) that does not support SSL.
- The domain name is an alias for a website with a different primary name, and the alias was inadvertently excluded from the certificate.
This error is likely due to an issue with your SSL configuration.
For detailed instructions on properly migrating your WordPress site from HTTP to HTTPS, check out our beginner’s guide on setting up SSL correctly.
Ensure that your SSL certificate is configured to support all variations of your domain name, including both www and non-www versions.
Another effective solution is to redirect your visitors to the appropriate version of your domain name.
For instance, if your SSL certificate is for ‘https://www.example.com’, you should redirect ‘https://example.com’ to that URL. For more information, refer to our article on how to set up redirects in WordPress.
This error may also occur if you have recently changed your website’s domain name or moved to a new web server. Be sure to update your SSL certificate with the new information.
If you are utilizing a CDN service, confirm that it supports SSL. If an upgrade is necessary, check out our expert recommendations for the best WordPress CDN services.
If you require assistance with any of these issues, feel free to contact your hosting provider’s technical support team.
When the Website Is Not the Issue
If the website isn’t the issue, the error may stem from software on your computer. This is often due to an outdated web browser or a conflict with your antivirus software.
Follow these steps to diagnose and resolve the issue.
Update Your Web Browser to the Latest Version
Using an outdated web browser, such as Internet Explorer or an older version of a modern browser, can trigger this error. This occurs because older software was developed before the latest TLS protocols and cannot recognize them.
In this case, simply switch to the latest version of a modern web browser, like Google Chrome.
If you are unable to update your browser due to an outdated operating system, such as Microsoft Windows XP, you might still be able to enable a newer version of TLS in your browser.
For instance, in Google Chrome, type chrome://flags in the address bar, search for ‘TLS 1.3’, and enable the option.
If you are using Firefox, type about:config in the address bar, search for TLS, and set the security.tls.version.max value to 4.
Clear Your Browser and SSL Cache
If the error message persists after clearing your cache, there are additional troubleshooting steps to consider. Start by deleting your browsing data and cookies.
Refer to our comprehensive guide on clearing your cache in all major browsers, which also includes instructions for deleting cookies.
On Windows, you can also clear the SSL cache, which may contain outdated SSL information for the website you are trying to visit.
To do this, search for ‘Internet Options’ in the Start menu. Navigate to the Content tab and click on the ‘Clear SSL state’ button.
Temporarily Disable Your Antivirus Software
It’s possible that your antivirus or firewall software is misconfigured, which can lead to the ‘ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH’ error appearing unnecessarily.
If your antivirus software includes an automatic SSL scanning feature, try disabling it. Otherwise, you may need to temporarily turn off your antivirus software. After doing so, attempt to access the website again.
If you can access the website with your antivirus software disabled, consider reaching out to the antivirus company’s technical support for assistance or switching to a more reliable application.
We trust that our guide has assisted you in resolving the ‘ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH’ error in WordPress. Additionally, you might find our tutorial on fixing mixed content errors in WordPress helpful, as well as our compilation of common WordPress errors and their solutions.
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