Some PayPal users plagued by security warnings, log-in woes

Jaikumar Vijayan   Today’s Top Stories   or  Other Internet Business Stories  

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February 16, 2007 (Computerworld) -- Some visitors to PayPal's Web site may be getting unexpected security warnings and log-in problems when they attempt to access the site or their accounts, a spokesman confirmed today.

The problems appear to be connected to an SSL security certificate used by Omniture Inc., a company PayPal is using to collect aggregate data about people using its Web site, the PayPal spokesman said. SSL certificates are used by Web browsers, such as Internet Explorer and Firefox, to check the authenticity of a site and to let users know whether a site is spoofed or not. The spokesman said the problem affects a "small portion" of PayPal users.

Omniture started using a new so-called wild-card SSL certificate on Jan. 29 that is causing problems for users of Windows 98 systems and even some newer versions of Windows when they attempt to access PayPal. "Users running outdated operating systems, like Windows 98, as well as some that are using more recent software are seeing these warnings when they use the PayPal service," the spokesman said. The company is working with Omniture to diagnose the problem and to fix it, he said. Using Firefox to access PayPal provides an immediate work-around for all users, he added.

A wild-card SSL certificate allows a company to use a single certificate to authenticate multiple subdomains within a larger domain.

Several users on a PayPal forum on eBay have complained over the last few days about error messages popping up on their screens warning about the validity of the certificate issued to the site.

"Since yesterday, I have been getting an error pop-up that won't let me sign into PayPal," one forum poster said on Feb. 2. "It comes up saying 'the security certificate for this site has been revoked,' and I've tried signing in through eBay and PayPal's [site] direct. Neither will let me in."

Another poster cited an error message saying the security certificate was "invalid or does not match the name of the site" on every PayPal page the poster attempted to access.

One poster today claimed to be getting error messages, even when using Internet Explorer 7. The poster claimed to have deleted all cookies and history files, downloaded the latest Windows Security Updates and tried accessing PayPal directly and via eBay -- and a message saying PayPal's certificate had been revoked still popped up.

"EBay and PayPal will not be receiving my business until this issue is completely resolved," the poster said. "I have lost money and product because of this issue and I am not a happy customer. It's like having my bank close its doors indefinitely and I can't get to my money to pay my customers," the poster said.

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