"Cannot validate SSL Certificates" error

[zabolots]

Updates to Malware Bytes  were failing so i manually downloaded the installer to install the latest version. Even though I had the fully licensed version previously, the new install ran as the "Free" version so I tried to activate it with my license code, which failed. The error message is "Cannot validate SSL Certificates". If I continue as the Free version, and try to check for updates, that fails as well. The version info is as follows:

MalwareBytes: 4.2.1.89

Update Pkg Version: 1.0.29939

Component Pkg Version: 1.0.1045

I've attached the logs from the MB support tool.

mbst-grab-results.zip

[Porthos]

19 minutes ago, zabolots said:

I've attached the logs from the MB support tool.

Do you recognize the following proxy?

Quote

ProxyEnable: [.DEFAULT] => Proxy is enabled.
ProxyServer: [.DEFAULT] => proxy2.secure.protective.com:80

 

Edited September 27, 2020 by Porthos

[zabolots]

29 minutes ago, Porthos said:

Do you recognize the following proxy?

 

Yes, that is the proxy server used on my work network. However, I am not connected to my work network and my Internet Options control panel shows that no proxy options are checked.

I guess the question is "Why does MBAM think that a proxy is enabled?"

[zabolots]

OK, so I was confused that MBAM said there was a proxy server but my Internet Options showed no proxy options were enabled. Then I realized that the MBAM client had its own proxy options under Settings. In the MBAM client, the Proxy option was enabled, but there was no server listed and the port # had a validation error (stating that it must be between 1-65k) but it had no value.

I turned off the MBAM Proxy option, rebooted and then was able to Check for Updates successfully (which found no updates, so apparently I'm running the latest version).

However, I still cannot activate my license key. I get the error "Unable to contact license server. Check your network settings or contact your system administrator for help."

I've attached an updated version of the logs gathered by the support tool.

mbst-grab-results.zip

[exile360]

Please see if setting your system to use an alternate DNS such as Google DNS as described in this article or OpenDNS as described in this article allows Malwarebytes to activate and let us know how it goes.

Thanks

[zabolots]

15 minutes ago, exile360 said:

Please see if setting your system to use an alternate DNS such as Google DNS as described in this article or OpenDNS as described in this article allows Malwarebytes to activate and let us know how it goes.

Thanks

I did try with a manually-set DNS server of 8.8.8.8 and it made no difference.

For some reason, MalwareBytes thinks it is configured to use a proxy server, even though there is no proxy on my network. I went through my registry and removed every instance of my work network and MBAS still comes up thinking there is a proxy server. Where does MBAM store the setting regarding the proxy server? Is it hidden in the registry somewhere?

[exile360]

No, Malwarebytes stores most of its settings inside encrypted configuration files so editing them manually is not possible, however if you click the Restore default settings button at the bottom of the General settings tab, that should correct it if Malwarebytes is failing to honor the proxy settings in the UI.  Please try that and let us know if it fixes the issue or not.

Thanks

[zabolots]

8 minutes ago, exile360 said:

No, Malwarebytes stores most of its settings inside encrypted configuration files so editing them manually is not possible, however if you click the Restore default settings button at the bottom of the General settings tab, that should correct it if Malwarebytes is failing to honor the proxy settings in the UI.  Please try that and let us know if it fixes the issue or not.

Thanks

I did exactly that and every time I clicked "Restore Default Settings" the proxy was re-enabled but never had a server name or port number. After manually deleting every reference to my work network from the registry, I am now able to get a clean install of MalwareBytes to come up without the Proxy option being selected. That is progress I guess.

However, now I'm back to the issue where any attempt to activate my license results in the following error:
 

SSL Validation Error

There was a problem validating SSL certificates.

Please launch Internet Explorer once and then try the operation again.

Even after launching IE, the license validation fails.

What certificate is MalwareBytes trying to use for license validation and how can I confirm it is installed correctly?

Latest set of logs attached.

mbst-grab-results.zip

[exile360]

OK, there must be some other issue with its configuration options as it should not be enabling the proxy option (it is disabled by default), so please do the following to see if it fixes the issue:

1. Download and run the Malwarebytes Support Tool
2. Accept the EULA and click Advanced tab on the left (not Start Repair)
3. Click the Clean button, and allow it to restart your system and then reinstall Malwarebytes, either by allowing the tool to do so when it offers to on restart, or by downloading and installing the latest version from here
   

Please let us know if this fixes the issue or not.

Thanks

[zabolots]

2 minutes ago, exile360 said:

OK, there must be some other issue with its configuration options as it should not be enabling the proxy option (it is disabled by default), so please do the following to see if it fixes the issue:

 

1. Download and run the Malwarebytes Support Tool
2. Accept the EULA and click Advanced tab on the left (not Start Repair)
3. Click the Clean button, and allow it to restart your system and then reinstall Malwarebytes, either by allowing the tool to do so when it offers to on restart, or by downloading and installing the latest version from here

 

Please let us know if this fixes the issue or not.

Thanks

Those are the exact steps I followed which resulted in the SSL error I mentioned in the post just above yours. The set of logs attached to that post were created with the support tool after the clean and reinstall option resulted in the same licensing failure.

I see several instances of this error in the logs:

09/27/20    " 13:32:39.259"    429143    1b60    1c24    WARNING    HttpConnection    mb::common::net::HttpConnection::LogExceptionDetails    "httpconnection.cpp"    1768    "Exception details: text=SSL Exception: error:1416F086:SSL routines:tls_process_server_certificate:certificate verify failed"
09/27/20    " 13:32:39.259"    429143    1b60    1c24    WARNING    TelemCtrlImpl    TelemetryControllerImpl::SendTelemetryRecord    "telemetrycontrollerimplhelper.cpp"    2061    "Problem sending JSON data to DSE stream [errors] - server returned: -8"

 

[exile360]

Thanks, please try activating Malwarebytes from Safe Mode with Networking to see if that works.  Instructions on booting into Safe Mode can be found here.

Please let us know how it goes and if the issue still occurs.

Thanks

[zabolots]

40 minutes ago, exile360 said:

Thanks, please try activating Malwarebytes from Safe Mode with Networking to see if that works.  Instructions on booting into Safe Mode can be found here.

Please let us know how it goes and if the issue still occurs.

Thanks

The same issue occurs when booted into "Safe Mode with Networking"

[Porthos]

16 minutes ago, zabolots said:

The same issue occurs when booted into "Safe Mode with Networking"

It is time to do some more checks and fixes that can not be done in this section of the forum. I will ask @AdvancedSetup to move the topic and assist you.

[exile360]

Thanks Porthos, I agree.  I'm not sure at this point what might be causing the issue but AdvancedSetup has the best chance to get it figured out and fixed.

[AdvancedSetup]

Hello @zabolots

I've seen a couple of systems running Windows 7 that are having issues with certificates. I've reported to our team and they should have a fix soon.

Please use the MBST tool to uninstall your current version but do not allow it to reinstall.

Manually download and install this version for now.

https://malwarebytes.box.com/s/xlmxytma7g3ntj9ge98rrafwg5pgp3x8

For now, please download the following installer and install Malwarebytes. Immediately after install go to Settings and in General turn off the Program update check options.

Then restart the computer and it should work well. Then hopefully in about a week we should have this certificate issue resolved.

Let me know if you have any issues

Thank you

 

 

[zabolots]

7 hours ago, AdvancedSetup said:

Hello @zabolots

I've seen a couple of systems running Windows 7 that are having issues with certificates. I've reported to our team and they should have a fix soon.

Please use the MBST tool to uninstall your current version but do not allow it to reinstall.

Manually download and install this version for now.

https://malwarebytes.box.com/s/xlmxytma7g3ntj9ge98rrafwg5pgp3x8

For now, please download the following installer and install Malwarebytes. Immediately after install go to Settings and in General turn off the Program update check options.

Then restart the computer and it should work well. Then hopefully in about a week we should have this certificate issue resolved.

Let me know if you have any issues

Thank you

 

@AdvancedSetupThe build you linked above installed fine and I was able to activate my license without issue.

How will I know when I should re-enable the updates to get the new version with the fix for the certificate issue?

Thanks!

[AdvancedSetup]

Hello @zabolots

I am tracking the users with this issue and once a build is ready to test I will post back to contact you and let you know.

Thanks again

 

[AdvancedSetup]

Hello @zabolots

The fix for the issue you're having has been released. Please download and run the following installer and this should correct the issue for you

https://downloads.malwarebytes.com/file/mb-windows

After installing this update make sure to click the little gear icon in the top right and go into the Settings, General and make sure check for updates is enabled.

Let me know if you encounter any issues with this update.

Thank you

 

 

Edited October 14, 2020 by AdvancedSetup
updated information

[zabolots]

Looks good. Installed fine, kept my premium account active and successfully downloaded and installed an update.

Thanks!

[exile360]

Excellent, thanks for letting us know.  If you run into any further issues please don't hesitate to post.

Thanks