PayPal SSL error / issue

Question

I keep getting this message while trying to communicate with the paypal api

here's my PayPal Class

<?php
class MyPayPal {

    function PPHttpPost($methodName_, $nvpStr_, $PayPalApiUsername, $PayPalApiPassword, $PayPalApiSignature, $PayPalMode) {
            // Set up your API credentials, PayPal end point, and API version.
            $API_UserName = urlencode($PayPalApiUsername);
            $API_Password = urlencode($PayPalApiPassword);
            $API_Signature = urlencode($PayPalApiSignature);

            $paypalmode = ($PayPalMode=='sandbox') ? '.sandbox' : '';

            $API_Endpoint = "https://api-3t".$paypalmode.".paypal.com/nvp";
            $version = urlencode('109.0');

            // Set the curl parameters.
            $ch = curl_init();

            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $API_Endpoint);
            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_VERBOSE, 1);

            // Turn off the server and peer verification (TrustManager Concept).
            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_SSL_VERIFYPEER, FALSE);
            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_SSL_VERIFYHOST, FALSE);

            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, 1);
            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POST, 1);


            // Set the API operation, version, and API signature in the request.
            $nvpreq = "METHOD=$methodName_&VERSION=$version&PWD=$API_Password&USER=$API_UserName&SIGNATURE=$API_Signature$nvpStr_";

            // Set the request as a POST FIELD for curl.
            curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, $nvpreq);

            // Get response from the server.
            $httpResponse = curl_exec($ch);

            if(!$httpResponse) {
                exit("$methodName_ failed: ".curl_error($ch).'('.curl_errno($ch).')');
            }

            // Extract the response details.
            $httpResponseAr = explode("&", $httpResponse);

            $httpParsedResponseAr = array();
            foreach ($httpResponseAr as $i => $value) {
                $tmpAr = explode("=", $value);
                if(sizeof($tmpAr) > 1) {
                    $httpParsedResponseAr[$tmpAr[0]] = $tmpAr[1];
                }
            }

            if((0 == sizeof($httpParsedResponseAr)) || !array_key_exists('ACK', $httpParsedResponseAr)) {
                exit("Invalid HTTP Response for POST request($nvpreq) to $API_Endpoint.");
            }

        return $httpParsedResponseAr;
    }

}
?>

And I get this response on the remote server:

SetExpressCheckout failed: error:14094410:SSL routines:SSL3_READ_BYTES:sslv3 alert handshake failure(35)

I've read some threads in there about it, but none seems to help at all.

I understand that PayPal is doing something with their apis, but the thing is, my code works just fine with localhost, but seems to fail while on the remote server (wich I also got SSL certificates just in case, and nothing has changed either)

Can someone please explain me, as if I was DUMB what's the procedure I should follow? Server side say it's not their fault... (I don't know how true that is tho...)

Edit: 2 weeks ago, same exact code, worked just fine in the server btw

Answer 1

Read about the POODLE Vunlerability and follow the info in that guide to fix it.

PayPal just officially flipped the switch on 1/19/16, so that's why your stuff worked before and doesn't now.