ChetOS.net

Amanda was using our computer today and discovered that she could not log into any site that uses SSL.  Internet Explorer just kept saying that there was a certificate error (you know, when the red shield comes up and asks if you really want to enter the site).

Turns out, the computer's date was wrong, set to 11/19/2068.  This meant that all of the publisher's certificates had expired.  Therefore, the site's certificates could not be verified.

Moral: If you get repeated certificate warnings/errors, make sure your date is set correctly.

As for how this happened in the first place, I do not know.  This was on Vista, and it might affect Windows 7 as well.