When starting Word, you may see the following error message continue to appear:


Insert a smart card.


While this message is generally benign and may not affect your ability to use Word or eXtyles, the presence of the message can be annoying. This message can appear when a security certificate for an Office add-on has expired or is not listed as a trusted document.


To prevent this message from appearing, please follow the instructions below to add the Word startup directory to your Trusted Locations. In Word:


  1. Click File > Options
  2. Click Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > Trusted Locations
  3. Click Add new location
  4. Click Browse
  5. Select the STARTUP folder for your Word installation:
    If you are running Office 2016, this location* is C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\Office16\STARTUP\
    If you are running Office 2013, this location* is C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office15\STARTUP\
    If you are running Office 2010, this location* is C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office14\STARTUP\

    * For all above locations, if you are running 32-bit Windows, the root directory is C:\Program Files\
  6.  Click OK