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Level 1

5 points

safari and amazon - toxic - needs a fix

My Safari browser seems to have become entwined with Amazon.com in a way that is destroying functionality on the Amazon website. I've confirmed that the problem is not on Amazon's end, and Apple Support has been unable to resolve the problem. I believe the problem is that something has attached itself to Safari that is linking it in a toxic way to Amazon. Anyone ever hear of this? Check it out: After browsing Amazon briefly the links stop working and I'm given a generic "sorry we're having a problem but we're working on it" screen, after which I can no longer access Amazon unless I restart the computer.

And most strangely, even if I start with the secure (https) address, I end up with Safari telling me the website certificate is not valid. The certificate turns out to be www.amazon.com.br. This is Amazon in Portuguese, for the Brazilian market! Today I was completely unable to log in, although there was nothing wrong with my account. The Amazon rep got me running again, but suggested I switch to Firefox for Amazon, which he claims is more compatible.

So far I've emptied the cache and deleted Amazon cookies many times. I've also reset the system management controller. Any other suggestions? Should I bite the bullet and reset Safari?

Is there a way to look into the background of Safari and see if amazon.com.br is hiding there somewhere? Is there a scan I could run to see if there's malware that's causing the problem?

And lastly, should I simply download Firefox in order to browse Amazon only? I'd really like to solve the problem, not put a bandaid on it.

Thanks for any wisdom. I browse Amazon a lot so this is really a pain.

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Feb 1, 2013 11:04 AM

62 replies

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,559 points

Feb 4, 2013 4:29 PM in response to MilosA

To "back up all data" do I have to do something other than what Time Machine would do, or simply tell Time Machine to do a back-up right then and there?

You don't have to do anything else, provided that the most recent snapshot contains everything you want to keep. If you're going to erase the volume, you should have at least two independent backups -- one is not enough to be safe. In fact, you should have at least two backups anyway.

I would like to know if the reinstallation fails to solve the problem.

MilosA Author

Level 1

5 points

Feb 4, 2013 4:46 PM in response to Linc Davis

I apologize for my lack of experience with the language of computers but I'd rather be safe than sorry. (At least I know how to follow instructions.)

When you say "you should have at least two independent backups" do you mean simply have Time Machine back up all data twice, or that I should purchase a separate hard drive to do the job the second time?

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,559 points

Feb 4, 2013 5:26 PM in response to MilosA

Two different drives. No single device is to be trusted with your data.

MilosA Author

Level 1

5 points

Feb 4, 2013 5:30 PM in response to Linc Davis

OK. Thank you, Linc.

MilosA Author

Level 1

5 points

Feb 14, 2013 8:18 AM in response to Linc Davis

UPDATE: Linc - Reporting back with the solution to my Safari/Amazon issue.

Before reinstalling OS X I decided to contact Apple for a last-gasp fix.

Based on the tests you and I ran, they narrowed it down to either a network or system-wide plug-in problem. We attacked the network first and changed my DNS. Instantly the problem was solved. The Apple tech suggested the Google DNS, but I decided to go with OpenDNS.

Browsing is now much faster and with no glitches.

Thanks again. I wouldn't have gotten anywhere without your expertise.

Milos

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,559 points

Feb 14, 2013 9:05 AM in response to MilosA

I was no help at all, but thanks for the update.

MilosA Author

Level 1

5 points

Feb 14, 2013 4:44 PM in response to Linc Davis

No Linc, you were a big help. You troubleshooted (troubleshot?) with me for many hours and we covered a lot of ground. I had spoken to Apple before I got on this site and aside from having me delete cookies, empty the cache and pull the cable out of the back of my computer, they were not helpful. They gave me the impression that my problem was so anomalous as to be unresolvable. It was only after you had me try everything you could think of that I was able to go back to Apple and say, look, we tried all these things and I still have a problem. I'm about to reinstall OS X. Any ideas before I go down that road? Then they took it seriously.

Rajnps

Level 1

0 points

Mar 13, 2013 6:32 PM in response to MilosA

I am having the same issue, after using Safari for years I can no longer use it for Amazon. When I spoke with the techies at Amazon they told me I needed to use a different browser so I down loaded Google Chrome, yesterday it worked fine but today I get Amazon Brazil and it is not letting me check out. Why it all of a sudden it has stopped working is unclear to me. If you figure it our please let me know.

MilosA Author

Level 1

5 points

Mar 13, 2013 7:31 PM in response to Rajnps

It's interesting that we both had/have problems with Amazon Brazil.

Anyway, if you go back a couple of replies in this thread, you'll see that my problem was solved. AppleCare advised me to change my DNS (Domain Name System). This is the method by which a web address is converted from words into the numbers that represent its true location, its IP address.

As soon as I did this, the problem was solved. I assume you have a router. Right now your DNS is probably set through it. Changing the DNS is free, quick and easy and you can do it yourself in 5 minutes. Go to Google DNS or OpenDNS and follow their instructions. You can try both of them, in fact, and see which one works better in terms of speed.

There's no harm in trying this, since one DNS is as good as another for the most part and nothing bad will happen to your computer if it doesn't work. You'll have service just the same and can even revert back to your original DNS if you prefer.

If it doesn't work, Apple had come up with a second possibility, which was that maybe I was having a problem with a system-wide plug-in. (I don't know how to deal with this, I would ask for help myself.) But hopefully changing the DNS will do the job.

If it helps, let me know.

Rajnps

Level 1

0 points

Mar 14, 2013 9:55 AM in response to MilosA

Thank you so very much for the reply, I will try what you advise later today and let you know how it panned out.

Best, N

Winkey99

Level 1

0 points

May 1, 2013 11:41 AM in response to MilosA

Thank you, MilosA and Linc Davis! I had the very same issue and it was driving me crazy. Thanks for being willing to come up with and to try all kinds of possible solutions. I can see that it was a long, tedious process. I just wanted you to know that I appreciate what you have done. I went to OpenDNS, and it was a quick, painless process, and now my Amazon problem is no longer. Thanks, guys!

Jun 4, 2013 9:45 AM in response to Winkey99

My name is Kenny and I work for Amazon. We have been trying to track down the root cause of this problem with Amazon requests getting redirected to Amazon.BR. All our investigation points to a certain brand of home router messing up DNS queries, but we haven't been able to confirm it. If you had this problem and wouldn't mind answering a few questions for me, I'd really appreciate it.

Please follow up with me directly at kennyri@amazon.com.

Thanks!
Kenny

MilosA Author

Level 1

5 points

Jun 4, 2013 8:54 PM in response to richark001

Kenny - I don't care to interact with you privately but I can say that my home router is an Actiontec Model GT704. Since I made the change to my DNS I have had absolutely no problems with Amazon or any other site, so whether that points to a problem with the router is unclear.