Clearing HSTS Settings in Popular Browsers: Why You Should Do It

If your browser has stored HSTS settings for a domain, you may encounter errors when trying to connect over HTTP or an insecure HTTPS connection. In such cases, clearing these settings can be the solution. This article will guide you on how to clear HSTS settings on Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.

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When attempting to access a website that has stored HSTS settings, you may encounter errors like 'Privacy error: Your connection is not private' (NET::ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID). For instance, if you're using Chrome, you might run into the following:

Unfortunately, some HSTS settings can inadvertently cause browser errors. This issue can also arise when attempting to access a website on another browser without encountering similar problems.

HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security) is a web security policy mechanism that forces browsers to interact with websites only via secure HTTPS connections and never HTTP. It was originally created in response to a vulnerability introduced by Moxie Marlinspike in his 2009 BlackHat Federal talk titled 'New Tricks for Defeating SSL in Practice.'

This vulnerability, which HSTS defends against, is illustrated by Marlinspike's SSLStrip tool. The tool works by converting secure HTTPS connections back to unsecured HTTP ones, helping to prevent protocol downgrade attacks and cookie hijacking.

In addition to preventing these types of attacks, HSTS remedies the issue of cookie-based login credentials being stolen by common tools like Firesheep.

To summarize, HSTS settings can sometimes cause browser errors. Clearing these settings on Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox is essential for maintaining a secure online experience.

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