How to Bypass “Your Connection Is Not Private” in Chrome

Seeing a “Your Connection is Not Private” message when you’re trying to connect to a website can be baffling and a little alarming. Why is the connection not private? Is someone hacking into my computer?

But good news: this message is just your browser’s way of protecting you from interacting with a website that is supposed to protect your online privacy but may not.

Although, there are a few other reasons why this message might display. In this article, we’ll discuss what this message means and the things you can do to rectify it in Chrome.

What Is the “Your Connection Is Not Private” Error?

You’ll receive this error message when visiting a website that is or should be running over a Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) session. Thus, the session between the browser on the device you are using and the web server (where the website resides) is encrypted.

Whenever you request to connect to a website by entering its URL in the address bar of your browser, your browser will then validate the SSL/TLS certificate installed on that website to ensure it has current privacy standards. The certificate is checked against the certificate authority and decryption of the certificate.

If your browser finds that the certificate is invalid, the transference of data between the website server and your browser will not be encrypted correctly, making the site unfit for this purpose. In this scenario, the “your connection is not private” message will display.

How to Bypass “Your Connection Is Not Private” in Chrome

In addition to a problem with the website’s certificate, the message could indicate a problem with your browser, computer, or operating system. Here are a few things to try to get past this error message and onto the website:

Reload the Page

The very first thing you should try is to refresh, Ctrl + R, or reload the web page (closing, then re-opening the page to connect to the website again), you can also use Ctrl + Shift + R. The Ctrl + Shift + R option reloads the page and redownloads the cached content, which can often clear up issues you’re experiencing.

There might have been a brief problem with the certificate or a glitch in your browser precisely at the same time you tried to connect previously.

Clear Your Browser Cache and Cookies

To ensure you’re not seeing any old versions of the page, try clearing Chrome’s cache and cookies. To do this via your computer:

1. Launch Chrome, then at the top right, click on the three-dot menu.
   
2. Click on More tools, then Clear browsing data.
   
3. Select a time range or click on All time to delete everything.
   
4. Check the Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files boxes.
   
5. Select Clear data.
   

To clear your cache and cookies via an Android device:

1. Launch the Chrome app.
   
2. From the top right, click on the three-dot menu.
   
3. Click on History, then Clear browsing data.
   
4. Select a time range or click on All time to delete everything.
   
5. Check the Cookies and site data and Cached images and files boxes.
   
6. Select Clear data.
   

To clear your cache and cookies via an iOS device:

1. Launch the Chrome app.
   
2. At the bottom, click on the three-dot menu.
   
3. Click on History, then Clear browsing data.
   
4. Ensure the Cookies, Site Data and Cached Images and Files checkboxes are checked.
   
5. Select Clear Browsing Data.
   

Ensure Your Operating System Is Up-to-Date

An outdated operating system can become incompatible with the latest encryption as browsers stop supporting them. Specifically, components in the newest SSL certificates stop working. Ensure you have the latest OS installed, like Windows 10 or Mac OS X or the latest Android and iOS.

Restart Your Computer

Close all your open applications, save everything, then try restarting your computer. You can try restarting your router too. This may clear out any temporary cache problems.

Ensure Your Computer’s Clock Has the Correct Time

Browsers depend on the computer’s clock to be correctly synced up to validate the SSL certificate. The times and dates on new desktops, laptops, and mobile devices don’t always automatically sync after the first login. To update the time on Windows:

1. On the task tray at the bottom right, right-click the time.
   
2. Click on Adjust date/time.
   
3. Click on Set time automatically.
   
4. Make sure the time displayed on the task tray now is correct. If not, select the Change button to manually select the time zone.
   

To update the time on Mac:

1. Select System Preferences from the Apple menu.
   
2. Select the Date & Time icon.
   
3. Click on Set date and time automatically.
   
4. Click on the Time Zone tab. If your location isn’t picked up, uncheck the option so you can manually select your time zone, region, and city via the map.
   

Use an Incognito Mode Session

Try accessing the website via a private browser session. To do this from your computer:

1. Launch Chrome.
   
2. From the top right, click on the three-dot menu.
   
3. Select New incognito window.
   
4. A new window will open with the Incognito icon (hat with glasses) in the top corner.
   

To access Incognito Mode via Android:

1. Launch the Chrome app.
   
2. Then click on the three-dot menu.
   
3. Select New Incognito tab.
   
4. A new window will open with the Incognito icon (hat with glasses) in the top left corner.

To access Incognito Mode via iPhone:

1. Launch the Chrome app.
   
2. Then click on the three-dot menu.
   
3. Select New Incognito tab.
   
4. A new Incognito window will open.
   

Temporarily Disable Antivirus and VPN

Occasionally, antivirus and VPN applications can block certain SSL certificates or connections. If you have any antivirus or VPN software running, you can try temporarily disabling them or disabling their “SSL Scan” feature.

Additional FAQs

What Is SSL?

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is the universal technology that keeps an internet connection secure to protect confidential and personally identifiable data being transmitted between two systems. It also helps prevent interception from cybercriminals. The systems involved can be between a server (website) and a client (browser).

It does this by scrambling the data transferred between the two systems while in transit, ensuring that the information is impossible to read between the two endpoints.

What Is TLS?

Transport Layer Security (TLS) is the new and improved version of SSL. As with SSL, it provides end-to-end protection to ensure the secure delivery of information sent between applications over the web.

Your Connection Is Now Secure

The “your connection is not private” error message is shown when your browser is unable to authenticate a website’s SSL certificate. This prevents you from interacting with a website that should encrypt data transactions but may not. Though this is typically the reason for this error message, other reasons include antivirus or VPN software blocking the connection.

Luckily, where there’s a will there’s a way, and there are things you can do to get past this message and successfully connect to the site.

Now that we’ve shown you some things to try to bypass this error message, did you try any of the tips provided in this article ­– if so, what one did you use? And were you successful in connecting to the website? Let us know in the comments section below.