Trust a self signed ssl cert on iPhone iOS 17

I'm trying to trust a self signed cert from a server I'm hosting on my network. I have the X.509 cert downloaded on my phone as a .crt file (although I've also tried with a *.cer file). When I click on the file, it prompts me to install the profile through the settings app. I do that, then it adds an entry for that cert in Settings->General->VPN & Device Management. It does highlight in red that the "Signed by" field is "Not Verified".


What I would expect to happen next is to see this cert enumerate in Settings->General->About->Certificate Trust Settings under the "Enable full trust for root certificates" section, but alas, there is no such section. Why? Is it because it is self signed? I had no problem doing this on my iPhone a few years ago, but this is a new iPhone and a new major release of iOS.

iPhone 14 Pro, iOS 17

Posted on Oct 3, 2023 03:43 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Mar 24, 2024 09:08 PM

In Settings->General->VPN & Device Management, tap on your certificate. Then tap on "Install" in the upper-right corner, and agree to the warning. Once you have done that, you can go to Settings->General->About->Certificate Trust Settings, and the certificate should be there, and you can tap the toggle to trust it.


I don't know why there is now this intermediate step in the VPN section. The Apple docs should be updated to mention that.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Mar 24, 2024 09:08 PM in response to sadfoot

In Settings->General->VPN & Device Management, tap on your certificate. Then tap on "Install" in the upper-right corner, and agree to the warning. Once you have done that, you can go to Settings->General->About->Certificate Trust Settings, and the certificate should be there, and you can tap the toggle to trust it.


I don't know why there is now this intermediate step in the VPN section. The Apple docs should be updated to mention that.

Oct 5, 2023 01:58 PM in response to sadfoot

Hello sadfoot,


Thank you for reaching out in Apple Support Communities. Just to be sure, have you followed these steps:


Trust manually installed certificate profiles in iOS and iPadOS
If you manually install a profile that contains a certificate payload in iOS and iPadOS, that certificate isn't automatically trusted for SSL. Learn how to manually trust an installed certificate profile.


This article is intended for system administrators for a school, business, or other organization.
You must manually turn on trust for SSL/TLS when you install a profile that is sent to you via email or downloaded from a website.
If you want to turn on SSL/TLS trust for that certificate, go to Settings > General > About > Certificate Trust Settings. Under "Enable full trust for root certificates," turn on trust for the certificate.
iPhone Certificate Trust Settings

Apple recommends deploying certificates via Apple Configurator or Mobile Device Management (MDM). Certificate payloads are automatically trusted for SSL when installed with Configurator, MDM, or as part of an MDM enrollment profile.

This information is outlined in this article and may help: Trust manually installed certificate profiles in iOS and iPadOS - Apple Support


If you need further assistance, you can contact Apple Support through this link here: Get Support


Kind regards.

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Trust a self signed ssl cert on iPhone iOS 17

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