Troubleshooting Encrypted Emails

Owned by Robert Adach
Aug 31, 2022
2 min read

Scope

The following steps should be used to troubleshoot issues when you receive either the following error messages after logging in/entering a one-time pass-code to view an encrypted message.

We can't display your message right now

Something went wrong and your encrypted message couldn't be opened. To view the message, follow the instructions in the original email message and try again.

Or

An error has occurred

We're sorry. An unknown error has occurred. Please try again later.

These messages are indicative of an issue with the recipient’s computer/connection and the troubleshooting steps below should be provided to assist the recipient in addressing their access issue.

Troubleshooting steps

  • If you are logged into any Microsoft services under a login other than the email address the message was directed to, please log out of all those services, and try again. Alternatively, you can try to copy the link to the message and open it in your browser via an incognito/private browsing sessions.

  • If the encrypted email is being sent to a distribution group or shared mailbox, do all the recipients have access to the shared ID & password for the new encryption account?

  • Ensure the browser you are accessing the mail item with is Internet Explorer 11 or Edge with the most current service packs, or the current version of Firefox or Chrome.

  • Try accessing both https://login.live.com and https://profile.live.com. If you are not able to access one or both of those pages, please work with your internal support organization to address your access as both URLS are accessed as part of the authentication process.

  • The encrypted email service uses the Exchange Outlook Web app email client for displaying the message. It is recommended to refer to http://technet.microsoft.com/library/hh373144.aspx for the latest list of IP Addresses or URLs that should be allowed through your firewall and/or security software.

  • If you receive a certificate is invalid error message when attempting to access the encrypted mail item, the root certificates installed on your computer may need to be updated. You can refer to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931125 for assistance.

  • It is possible that your company/school/organization network and/or internet security systems may be causing connection and certificate problems or blocking access. This may be difficult to diagnose since your issue may be intermittent and your IT Team should be able to assist in addressing this. If you do not have an IT team, as a temporary troubleshooting step, disable any anti-virus or computer security software installed on your computer. If this resolves the issue, you should immediately re-enable the software and contact the vendor for assistance in adjusting the setting to allow access to the encrypted emails

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