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iPad Safari and other browsers won't load certain sites

TomFromAndroid

TomFromAndroid

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 24, 2019
29
9
I'm wondering why my iPad mini 4 and iPhone SE won't load certain web pages. I have the latest (and I guess the last) version of iOS 15.8 installed on both devices and I've tried using both Safari and Brave browsers, yet Citi.com loads only a blank page instead of the normal log-in page. There are a number of other sites that have similar problems. Meanwhile, my ancient Windows PC, connected to the same home wi-fi network, will allow access to practically everything using Firefox, Brave and Edge. Any ideas about what's wrong with the Apple devices? Thanks in advance.
 
I just tried. On all three of my first-generation MacBook Air, iPhone 13 mini, and 2018 iPad Pro, there’s no trouble whatsoever loading citi.com. They’re all running the most recent operating systems with all updates.

The usual troubleshooting steps would apply. Are you using any content blockers? Are you using an ISP who’s doing something wonky? Can you see anything if you access it through archive.org?

Credit Cards, Banking, Mortgage, Personal Loans | Citi.com

web.archive.org web.archive.org

You can also try to “request desktop version,” though I’ll admit I don’t remember where to find that option for iOS 15. And it’s not out of the question that, for whatever reason, Citibank has decided to refuse to serve Web pages to browsers that old. If so, there’s not an awful lot you can do aside from upgrade …

Cheers,

b&
 
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BenGoren said:
I just tried. On all three of my first-generation MacBook Air, iPhone 13 mini, and 2018 iPad Pro, there’s no trouble whatsoever loading citi.com. They’re all running the most recent operating systems with all updates.

The usual troubleshooting steps would apply. Are you using any content blockers? Are you using an ISP who’s doing something wonky? Can you see anything if you access it through archive.org?

Credit Cards, Banking, Mortgage, Personal Loans | Citi.com

web.archive.org web.archive.org

You can also try to “request desktop version,” though I’ll admit I don’t remember where to find that option for iOS 15. And it’s not out of the question that, for whatever reason, Citibank has decided to refuse to serve Web pages to browsers that old. If so, there’s not an awful lot you can do aside from upgrade …

Cheers,

b&
Click to expand...
Thanks. I’ve tried the links you mentioned without success. I tried searching for a desktop version, no luck there. And what’s even weirder is that anything I search for containing “Citi” or Citibank comes up blank, or with a bunch of gray boxes where links should be. I’m not using any content blockers (that I know of). My ISP is Spectrum, maybe they’re having a feud with Citi 😀 but as I said, the desktop PC has no problems. I guess it might really be time to update the tablet and phone.
 
TomFromAndroid said:
version of iOS 15.8 installed on both devices and I've tried using both Safari and Brave browsers
Click to expand...

And probably will not be able to access on those devices and or browsers.

Three releases ago of iOS, all browsers for iOS use Apple's WebKit, so if Safari does not work, other browsers will not as well. Probably a change to latest standards, methods, etc and old WebKits can't handle them.

I see this on my mother's Catalina install and Safari. Some sites work well, Citi, blank. But since Firefox etc on MacOS use their own render engines, can view Citi in those browsers (she just does email, Zoom, and solitaire games on Mac, so no need to deal with Safari and Citi so Catalina is OK for her needs).
 
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TomFromAndroid said:
...My ISP is Spectrum, maybe they’re having a feud with Citi 😀 but as I said, the desktop PC has no problems.
Click to expand...
Probably not Spectrum - I'm on iOS 18 and have Spectrum Mobile as my ISP and have no trouble accessing Citi.com.

As previously noted, might be a compatibility issue with the version of iOS you're on.
 
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NoBoMac said:
And probably will not be able to access on those devices and or browsers.

Three releases ago of iOS, all browsers for iOS use Apple's WebKit, so if Safari does not work, other browsers will not as well. Probably a change to latest standards, methods, etc and old WebKits can't handle them.

I see this on my mother's Catalina install and Safari. Some sites work well, Citi, blank. But since Firefox etc on MacOS use their own render engines, can view Citi in those browsers (she just does email, Zoom, and solitaire games on Mac, so no need to deal with Safari and Citi so Catalina is OK for her needs).
Click to expand...
Just for kicks, I tried installing Firefox and this is what I got. So it looks like it’s really the end of the road for these two I-devices. Thanks for your input & efforts!
 

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muzzy996 said:
Probably not Spectrum - I'm on iOS 18 and have Spectrum Mobile as my ISP and have no trouble accessing Citi.com.

As previously noted, might be a compatibility issue with the version of iOS you're on.
Click to expand...
I think you’re right. I’ve found over the past year that I can’t upgrade a lot of apps because everything is being written for iOS 16, so I suppose it’s logical that everything else is going that way too. 😨
 
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TomFromAndroid said:
Just for kicks, I tried installing Firefox and this is what I got. So it looks like it’s really the end of the road for these two I-devices. Thanks for your input & efforts!
Click to expand...

Contrary to current expectations, one needs to wait a second (or two) for the content to populate . . .
 
i'm getting a warning occasionally s safari won't upload images or videos in some circumstances.
I get a "dismiss" or a "allow with limited blah blah"
this never happens with Vivaldi or on a boat wearing a coat being oared by a goat!
hmmmmm?
 
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It’s because you’re using an operating system from 2022 that is no longer receiving security updates.
Banking websites and applications are almost always the first to stop working, but more will follow.
 
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Out of curiousity I checked out citi.com for you on my Mini 4 with latest iPad OS 18.5.3 and getting a blank page with gray boxes. It however loads all the other citibank pages like jobs/investors info just fine. Though I only use mine for epub now, it's a bummer since the Mini 4 is still such a usable iPad for many people I'm guessing :confused:
 
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Lounge vibes 05 said:
It’s because you’re using an operating system from 2022 that is no longer receiving security updates.
Banking websites and applications are almost always the first to stop working, but more will follow.
Click to expand...
I knew that the end was near for updates to this device, but I thought that they weren’t actually pulling the plug on this OS until later in the year.
 
goodthymes said:
Out of curiousity I checked out citi.com for you on my Mini 4 with latest iPad OS 18.5.3 and getting a blank page with gray boxes. It however loads all the other citibank pages like jobs/investors info just fine. Though I only use mine for epub now, it's a bummer since the Mini 4 is still such a usable iPad for many people I'm guessing :confused:
Click to expand...
I can access Citi web pages for other purposes (such as if you want to sign up for a new card). It seems to be just the login page that had been working up until a week ago. You’re right, the Mini is a good tablet, it’s disappointing to find that it’s obsolete in about the same length of time as the Android devices I had before.
 
TomFromAndroid said:
You’re right, the Mini is a good tablet, it’s disappointing to find that it’s obsolete in about the same length of time as the Android devices I had before.
Click to expand...

I guess if you got one late, seems like short time, but device was released in 2015 with software support until 2024. Nine years of support if got in on the ground floor. I'd be hard pressed to name any Android tablet that got/gets that level of support.
 
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NoBoMac said:
I guess if you got one late, seems like short time, but device was released in 2015 with software support until 2024. Nine years of support if got in on the ground floor. I'd be hard pressed to name any Android tablet that got/gets that level of support.
Click to expand...

2022 if just counting major firmware updates.

Granted, Apple seems to be pretty good at releasing critical security updates for older devices.
 
NoBoMac said:
I guess if you got one late, seems like short time, but device was released in 2015 with software support until 2024. Nine years of support if got in on the ground floor. I'd be hard pressed to name any Android tablet that got/gets that level of support.
Click to expand...
All very true, but I could have saved some $$ with an Android. 😉
 
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As a user who never updates iOS and has used outdated iOS versions since 2011, Safari is pretty much one of the first things that starts breaking. That said… iOS 15 breaking now seems a little too quick. I didn’t think it had that much longer left, but I thought up until four it was typically fine. I have an iPad Air 5 running iPadOS 15 and I have encountered no Safari issues yet.

But as an example, the Apple website no longer loads and stays blank on iOS 12. iOS 13 doesn’t work either, but iOS 15 does.

It’s the first casualty of outdated iOS versions, but thankfully finding a workaround is easy. By the time you are four or five versions behind, though… there it starts to be really annoying, as a significant amount of websites start failing.

iOS 12, by now, is practically a toss-up between working and staying blank. I haven’t tried it recently, but I reckon iOS 10 is practically unusable by now. I’d use iOS 15 onwards without significant issues in spite of what you mention.
 
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Lounge vibes 05 said:
Apple almost always supports the latest three versions of their operating systems.
Right now that would be iOS 16, 17 and 18, along with macOS Ventura, Sonoma, and Sequoia.
Click to expand...
For security fixes - yes. But not application functionality updates.

TomFromAndroid said:
I knew that the end was near for updates to this device, but I thought that they weren’t actually pulling the plug on this OS until later in the year.
Click to expand...
Functionality updates only apply to current OS. Safari and the OS only get most security fixes for 3 years.

Web protocols are evolving, so some web sites don't work with old browsers. Fall back for a few further years is to use Firefox on macOS. No simple fallback for iPhone and iPad.
 
gilby101 said:
For security fixes - yes. But not application functionality updates.


Functionality updates only apply to current OS. Safari and the OS only get most security fixes for 3 years.

Web protocols are evolving, so some web sites don't work with old browsers. Fall back for a few further years is to use Firefox on macOS. No simple fallback for iPhone and iPad.
Click to expand...
Thanks, that’s helpful as I’m considering switching from my PC to a new iMac. I’ve been wondering if I would find myself in this same predicament with macOS in a few years. 👍
 
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