Google Faux Pas

The problem on your computer, not Google’s site.

First, check your computer’s clock (date, time & time-zone). (In Win7 right-click the time-of-day, usually at the right end of the task bar, and left-click on “Adjust date/time,” to fix it.) Site certificates are good for certain date ranges; if the computer clock is wrong some valid site certificates may be shown as expired.

However, I doubt that’s really the problem in this case. The wrong-clock problem normally causes an error complaint about the site’s certificate being expired, not “presented a certificate issued by an entity that is not trusted.” That problem is more likely caused by a malware infection on your computer. So if the computer clock is right, do this:

1. Run rkill, to stop evil processes. (Get it here, by clicking one of the BLUE download buttons, not the similar-looking green buttons in some of the ads.)

2. Tell your existing anti-virus program to update its database of virus definitions.

3. Install and run Malwarebytes free edition, and when it finishes tell it to delete everything it found.

4. Scan with your regular anti-virus program.

5. Reboot and see whether the problem is gone.

6a. If not, then repeat step 1 and then download and run ComboFix.

6b. Or repeat step 1 and then scan with the free version ESet Online Scanner.

6c. Or repeat step 1 and then try a System Restore, to a date/time before the problem occurred. (But first copy into your My Documents folder [or a sub-folder of it] any files that you’ve saved on your Desktop since the date that you’re restoring to.)