Honestly to a small extent I agree with OP. SSL is a good thing to have and all. But it can make things tricky with older systems and HTPPS certs are a pain when the date on a system is not right. I been called up many times as some of the system at my work do not have RTC in them and they get there time from a NTP server. If the power goes out for a good time on that segment and the systems come back on before the NTP server no one can get work done and I get called up left and right.
A backup generator or systems with a RTC would fix that, but its not in the budget sadly. The other problem is when you just want to get a driver or something on a old system that lacks USB and you don't have any CD-R's or a drive that can read CD-R or know how to setup a FTP or something. This is where I recommend something like Phone drive, and a walled lan, but whatever.
In summery its a lot better to have SSL and HTPPS and we should have it on any/all sites with logins. Although rare it can be a problem at times. Also shame on anyone using free wifi or a hotspot.
IE6 on the other hand, Why? I mean I understand if you have a old system and all, but at lest use something Ok for its age.
I mean IE6 is evil and all.
http://toastytech.com/evil/
Any system running IE6 should be able to atlest run firefox2 if not 3.6. And 3.6 was drop in 2012 so you get a much more secure browser. But if your running IE6 I bet your running 9x or 2k maybe XP? I don't think a newer browser alone will fix everything.
That all aside I sure hope he does not do his banking or buys stuff via IE6.
EDIT:
Also someone and splice into a Ethernet cable or coaxial cable on the pole and pull login info too. I seen that done before. So your not always safe even on your home network.