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SSL Certificates

A number of web sites hosted by GCFN use encryption for a number of world wide web applications. GCFN installs a new Secure Sockets Layer (also known as SSL) encryption certificate (which we'll call a "cert" for brevity's sake) once a year, every November. SSL is used to protect the confidentiality of information transmitted over the Internet. By keeping information confidential, we can better allow you to manage your privacy on the Internet. You can learn more about the Secure Sockets Layer by clicking here.

Due to how SSL works, all encryption certificates will eventually expire and must periodically be renewed. Our certificates expire every November. Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) operates the Certificate Authority (CA) that signs our site certificates; that CA will expire on November 1, 2005.

Whenever the trusted certificate you use expires, you may need to make some minor changes to your browser so that you can easily use GCFN systems. Below you will find detailed instructions on how to do this for Netscape Communicator 4.x, 4.7x, and Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.x.

Configuring your browser to work with OSC certificates

1. Remove the old certificate authority signatures (this step may not always be necessary).
   1. Locate the appropriate place to remove an old certificate authority signature.
      1. In Netscape Communicator 4.x, Select the Communicator --> Security Info menu and select the Signers link.
      2. In Netscape Communicator 4.7x, Select the Communicator --> Tools --> Security Info menu and select the Signers link.
      3. In Internet Explorer 5.x, Select the Tools --> Internet options menu. Go to the Content tab and click on Certificates. You will need to look at the Intermediate Certificate Authoirties and Trusted Root Authorities tabs (by default, a cert will be put into the Trusted Root Authorities area, but you (the end-user) have control over this operation and can place it elsewhere).
   2. Find and select the OSC certificate (probably named "OSC" something). If the OSC certificate is not there, then it is unnecessary to remove an old certificate authority signature.
   3. Select the Delete or Remove button, whichever is available.
2. Remove old site certificates (this step may not always be necessary).
   1. Locate the appropriate place to remove an old certificate authority signature.
      1. In Netscape Communicator 4.x, Select the Communicator --> Security Info menu and select the Web Sites link.
      2. In Netscape Communicator 4.7x, Select the Communicator --> Tools --> Security Info menu and select the Web Sites link.
      3. In Internet Explorer 5.x, Select the Tools --> Internet options menu. Go to the Content tab and click on Certificates. You will need to look at the Intermediate Certificate Authoirties and Trusted Root Authorities tabs (by default, a cert will be put into the Trusted Root Authorities area, but you (the end-user) have control over this operation and can place it elsewhere).
   2. Find and select the appropriate web site certificate. If there is not an entry for www.gcfn.net, www.gcfn.org, or www.worksource.net, then it is unnecessary to remove old site certificates.
   3. Select the Delete button.
3. Review the following instructions to install the OSC Certificate Authority signature
   1. You'll need to click on URL to install the OSC SSL Authority certificate in step 4, below, then follow your browser's instructions for accepting an Certificate Authority.
   2. In Internet Explorer, it is necessary to explicitly install install the certificate by clicking on the "Install" button in the pop-up window.
   3. Click all "Accept this Certificate..." check boxes as you proceed through this process.
   4. Do NOT check the "Warn me before..." checkbox.
   5. For the Nickname, enter "OSC Certificate Authority" so that this certificate will be easy to find again when it expires.
4. Install the OSC SSL Authority Certificate
5. Exit all instances and then restart your browser, so that all changes propagate to all browsing sessions on your machine.