SSL certificates form an important part of your website’s security systems and establish trust with your audience over the internet. However, as easy to use as they are, they can still sometimes run into random bugs and glitches that stump developers.
In this article, we’re talking about the “error:1408f10b:ssl routines:ssl3_get_record:wrong version number” issue, its causes and what you can do to fix the problem.
What causes this error?
The website’s TLS handshake mainly triggers the error and doesn’t reply as expected. For an SSL certificate to be verified, the client and the server exchange TLS data. This handshake can break down if either party sends a data or protocol mismatch between the TLS handshakes.
Also read: How to fix “the plain http request was sent to https port”?
How to fix this error?
Here are three fixes you can try out.
Update your TLS version
If your web server is using an older version of TLS, you need to upgrade your TLS/SSL library to support the latest standard. While this is something your hosting provider should automatically do, in case you see the error, updating the library manually shouldn’t be too much of a hassle.
You will need to contact your hosting provider for the exact steps.
Check your listing port
You also need to ensure that your web server’s 443 port is open and is listening for traffic. This port is responsible for responding to the HTTPS protocol and, by extension, working with the SSL certificate on your site. Contact your web hosting provider for more details on how to access or open ports; depending on your plan, you might not have access to these settings.
Disabling any proxies or VPNs that you might be using
Another common reason people run into this issue is when they’re trying to connect to a host through a proxy or VPN connection, and the host keeps denying the connection request.
Several high-profile sites, especially streaming ones like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, detect and disable proxies or VPNs. In such cases, the solution is pretty straightforward. You disable your proxy or VPN client and try again.
Also read: Fix: Authenticate/decrypt packet error: packet hmac authentication failed
