Because a security certificate present on all connected objects expires, millions of smartphones, game consoles and computers could be deprived of the Internet on September 30, 2021. This concerns all devices marketed before 2017, and which have not been updated.
Smartphones, computers, tablets, but also game consoles and televisions … the Internet has been everywhere and for years. But yet, on September 30, 2021, millions of devices could be deprived of connection! A giant “blackout” that could affect a very large number of devices designed before 2017. Why? Because this September 30, 2021, a certificate digital security will expire, and at the same time, the absence of an update will block another certificate, more widespread, essential today to connect to the Internet, and watch for example videos, or check e-mails.
The culprit is the certificate IdentTrust DST Root CA X3, and it is he who allows to certify the ISRG file Root X1, essential today to encrypt Internet connections. According to Scott Helme, the researcher at the origin of this discovery, all the former smartphones, Connected TVs or game consoles that have not been updated will no longer have access to certain Internet services.
All affected operating systems
In his article, he gives many examples, and it is about iPhone under iOS 9, smartphones under Android 2.3.5 and earlier or PCs with the Windows XP Service Pack 2 or Apple computers running macOS 10.12.0. This also concerns consoles like the PS3 or the PS4, or devices running Ubuntu and Blackberry. The full list is on this page.
To anticipate this possible cutoff, two solutions: update your device; install a recent version of Navigator Firefox because it does not use this security certificate and thus allows you to connect to the Internet without fear of an interruption.
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