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HTTP error while accessing Library eResources

Troubleshooting guide for EzProxy error while accessing HTTP only e-resources

Why is HTTP blocked?

To improve cybersecurity at UC, HTTP has been blocked on University systems. Instead, HTTPS - the secure version of HTTP is used to access resources on the Internet. Adding a "s" to a "http://" web address forces a secure connection to the web resource.

How to fix your link

To fix the error, you can edit the link so HTTPS is used to connect to the e-resource. You can do this by:

  • Navigation to the web address bar at the top of your browser window which contains the link (eg. "http://oecd...")
  • Changing the "http://" in the beginning of the address to "https://"
  • Pressing "Enter" (Windows devices) or "Return" (Apple devices) on your keyboard.

The webpage will reload and hopefully display the resource that you were looking for.

Special case: CCH Intelliconnect

If you face the issue while connecting to the CCH IntelliConnect database, please follow the relevant steps to enable HTTPS only mode for your browser:

  1. For Google Chrome, refer to "HTTPS-First mode" section in this guide: https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/10468685?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop&oco=0
  2. For Microsoft Edge, follow the below steps:
    • Copy and paste the following link in your Edge browser window: edge://flags/#edge-automatic-https
    • Turn Automatic HTTPS to "Enabled" and restart the browser when prompted.
    • After the browser has restarted, go to Settings -> Privacy, search and services
    • Scroll down and locate the option called "Automatically switch to more secure connections with Automatic HTTPS".
    • Under this option, change the selection to "Always switch from HTTP to HTTPS".
  3. For Mozilla FireFox, refer to: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/https-only-prefs
  4. The HTTPS only mode is automatically enabled on Safari version 15 and later.

Note: This setting will force your browser to use HTTPS only which may break other websites that only use HTTP protocol. You can still view those websites by clicking on "Continue" on the HTTP warning page.