diff --git a/src/crypto/gcm.js b/src/crypto/gcm.js
index 00cef355..d21aefa9 100644
--- a/src/crypto/gcm.js
+++ b/src/crypto/gcm.js
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@
 import util from '../util.js';
 import config from '../config';
 import asmCrypto from 'asmcrypto-lite';
-const webCrypto = util.getWebCrypto();
+const webCrypto = typeof window !== 'undefined' && window.crypto && window.crypto.subtle; // no GCM support in IE11, Safari 9
 const nodeCrypto = util.getNodeCrypto();
 const Buffer = util.getNodeBuffer();