How to fix wifi connected, but not loading websites due to "the certificate for this server was invalid"
Recently encountered this issue and want to share for folks who run into the same issue. If after upgrading your iPad to 17.7.5, and your Safari constantly gives "the certificate for this server was invalid" for any website other than Apple's own site. Or if App Store shows you list of apps, but when clicking 'Download' gives an error. Here's all the things I tried, what didn't work, and what did work:
What didn't work for me, but might work for you (scroll down to see what worked if these steps didn't work for you):
- Set Date and Time Automatically: Go to Settings > General > Date & Time, and turn off Set automatically. Then, toggle 'Set automatically' back on.
- Clear Safari Cache: Go to Settings > Apps (or Safari) > Clear History and Website Data to flush corrupted cached data.
- Reset Network Settings: Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPad > Reset > Reset Network Settings if deep network errors persist.
- Remove any VPN profiles: Go to Settings > General > VPN & Device Management > delete any existing VPN profiles
What DID work for me: Reinstalling Apple's root certificates.
1. Download the Apple Root Certificate
Open Safari on your iPad.
Go to apple.com/certificateauthority
Find and download the Apple Root CA - G2 certificate (or the latest available Apple Root CA).
If the certificate doesn’t install automatically, continue to the next steps.
2. Manually Install the Certificate
Go to Settings > General > VPN & Device Management and check if the certificate is listed under "Downloaded Profile."
If it’s there, tap Install and confirm.
3. Trust the Certificate
Go to Settings > General > About > Certificate Trust Settings.
Find the newly installed Apple Root CA and toggle it to Trusted.
Restart your iPad to apply the changes.
If it doesn't work, repeat the same steps with Apple Root CA - G3 certificate.
And if that doesn't work, factory reset the iPad.