No longer able to digitally sign VBA code in Excel 2016

Anonymous
2017-05-01T19:09:15+00:00

Hello all! 

I have a DigiCert issued code signing certificate that I have been able to use from January 2017 up until two weeks ago (about the time of the Creator's Update for Windows 10 Pro). The Cert is valid through 2020. Unfortunately, I when I try to sign VBA code with it now, I get the error message "There was a problem with the digital certificate. The VBA project could not be signed. The signature will be discarded.

Is anyone else getting this message when signing VBA code with a Cert that previously worked?

I was able to test on a co-worker’s computer running

OS: Windows 7 Pro SP1

Office: Office 365 ProPlus Ver 1701 (build 7766.2076).

I was able to successfully sign a macro file on this machine.

My computer is running

OS: Windows 10 Pro version 1703 (build 15063.250)

Office: Office 365 Ver 1701 (Build 7967.2139)

I am not able to successfully sign a macro file on my machine. I am able to successfully import the certificate though.

DigiCert of course blames the issue on Microsoft, and given that I can successfully sign on my co-worker's Windows 7 machine with a slightly older build of Office 365, I wonder if something  in the newer version of Office 365 broke the ability to sign VBA macros.

Thanks - Nate

***Post moved by the moderator to the appropriate forum category.***

Microsoft 365 and Office | Excel | For home | Windows

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2017-08-03T18:12:15+00:00

Hi StephenGibb,

My re-installation must have missed the August updates you mention by a whisker. I forced an update just now, 1707 Build 8326.2062 is now my version. And, thankfully, it works!

Some extra info about when the problem was occurring for anyone else who might come across this thread:

As well as the failure to sign a project, Office was silently disabling all signed macros, not just those in the locations I mentioned above.

Was this answer helpful?

4 people found this answer helpful.
0 comments

50 additional answers

Sort by: Oldest
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2017-07-10T19:14:13+00:00

    Thanks for the additional forensics. Can you do the same thing that I asked EtanRellim to do above and send me the registry dumps for HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Cryptography\OID\EncodingType0 and HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Cryptography\Providers on the freshly installed machine?

    You can use the temp email address ******@gustr.com

    Thanks.

    ***Personal information deleted by the moderator. Please see the Microsoft Community Frequently Asked Questions for more information on how you can protect your privacy.***

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Deleted

    This answer has been deleted due to a violation of our Code of Conduct. The answer was manually reported or identified through automated detection before action was taken. Please refer to our Code of Conduct for more information.

    Comments have been turned off. Learn more

  3. Anonymous
    2017-07-10T20:25:11+00:00

    Weird, I'm still seeing it when I load the response. Anyway, it's "breich" at "gustr" dot "com".

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Deleted

    This answer has been deleted due to a violation of our Code of Conduct. The answer was manually reported or identified through automated detection before action was taken. Please refer to our Code of Conduct for more information.

    Comments have been turned off. Learn more