Access Keys:
Skip to content (Access Key - 0)

Check for the MIT CA

On this page:

Overview

The MIT CA (Certification Authority) authenticates secure web servers to your computer. MIT CA certificates obtained after April, 2006, are valid until August, 2026.

You must get the MIT CA before you can get a personal certificate.

MIT CA vs. Personal Certificates
The MIT CA is not the same as your Personal Certificate. You must renew your Personal Certificate everry year, in August. If you're having difficulty accessing MIT sites, make sure you have both the MIT CA and your Personal Certificate installed. See How do I test my MIT personal certificate?

Check for the MIT CA

To check manually whether you have the MIT CA installed:

Firefox

  1. On Athena, Linux, and Macintosh, open Preferences > Advanced > View Certificates.
    On Windows, open Tools > Options > Advanced > Encryption > View Certificates.
  2. In the Certificate Manager window, click the Authorities tab.
  3. Scroll to find Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT Certification Authority (listed alphabetically, or at the end of the list).

Internet Explorer on Windows

  1. Open Tools > Internet Options > Content.
  2. Click the Certificates button.
  3. In the Certificates window, click the Trusted Root Certificate Authority tab.
  4. Scroll to find the MIT CA (alphabetically or at end of list).

Safari and Chrome on Macintosh

  1. Open Keychain Access: [Macintosh HD] > Applications > Utilities > Keychain Access.
  2. If necessary, click the Show Keychains button in the bottom left corner of the Keychain Access window and ensure that Certificates is highlighted on the bottom-left column for "Category".
  3. In the Keychains list at the top left, select:
    Mac 10.7.x: login
    Mac 10.5.x or 10.6.x: System (not System roots)
    Mac 10.4.x.: X509Anchors
  4. Scroll down to MIT Certification Authority.
    Result: You need to have one and only one MIT Certification Authority. If you click on it to highlight it, you can see its expiration date, which should be August 2026.

MIT CA Not Found?

If you did not find an MIT-identified Certificate Authority (MIT CA), you need to get the MIT CA.

Getting Help

Athena users: Athena Consulting
Macintosh, Windows, or Linux users: IS&T Help Desk

Related Links

Certificates at MIT

IS&T Contributions

Documentation and information provided by IS&T staff members


Last Modified:

February 03, 2016

Get Help

Request help
from the Help Desk
Report a security incident
to the Security Team
Labels:
c-certificates c-certificates Delete
certificate certificate Delete
authority authority Delete
Enter labels to add to this page:
Please wait 
Looking for a label? Just start typing.
Feedback
This product/service is:
Easy to use
Average
Difficult to use

This article is:
Helpful
Inaccurate
Obsolete
Adaptavist Theme Builder (4.2.3) Powered by Atlassian Confluence 3.5.13, the Enterprise Wiki