diff --git a/server.conf.in b/server.conf.in
index 05c1cbb..e4b5dcb 100644
--- a/server.conf.in
+++ b/server.conf.in
@@ -127,6 +127,11 @@ connectionsperhost = 8
 # - etcd: Proxy URLs are retrieved from an etcd cluster (see below).
 #urltype = static
 
+# If set to "true", certificate validation of proxy servers will be skipped.
+# This should only be enabled during development, e.g. to work with self-signed
+# certificates.
+#skipverify = false
+
 # For type "proxy": the id of the token to use when connecting to proxy servers.
 #token_id = server1
 
diff --git a/src/signaling/mcu_proxy.go b/src/signaling/mcu_proxy.go
index 3fecb15..6a68c55 100644
--- a/src/signaling/mcu_proxy.go
+++ b/src/signaling/mcu_proxy.go
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ package signaling
 import (
 	"context"
 	"crypto/rsa"
+	"crypto/tls"
 	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
 	"io/ioutil"
@@ -68,13 +69,6 @@ const (
 	defaultProxyTimeoutSeconds = 2
 )
 
-var (
-	websocketDialer = &websocket.Dialer{
-		Proxy:            http.ProxyFromEnvironment,
-		HandshakeTimeout: 45 * time.Second,
-	}
-)
-
 type mcuProxyPubSubCommon struct {
 	streamType string
 	proxyId    string
@@ -568,7 +562,7 @@ func (c *mcuProxyConnection) reconnect() {
 		u.Scheme = "wss"
 	}
 
-	conn, _, err := websocketDialer.Dial(u.String(), nil)
+	conn, _, err := c.proxy.dialer.Dial(u.String(), nil)
 	if err != nil {
 		log.Printf("Could not connect to %s: %s", u, err)
 		c.scheduleReconnect()
@@ -974,6 +968,7 @@ type mcuProxy struct {
 	keyInfos  map[string]*ProxyInformationEtcd
 	urlToKey  map[string]string
 
+	dialer         *websocket.Dialer
 	connections    []*mcuProxyConnection
 	connectionsMap map[string]*mcuProxyConnection
 	connectionsMu  sync.RWMutex
@@ -1019,6 +1014,10 @@ func NewMcuProxy(config *goconf.ConfigFile) (Mcu, error) {
 		tokenId:  tokenId,
 		tokenKey: tokenKey,
 
+		dialer: &websocket.Dialer{
+			Proxy:            http.ProxyFromEnvironment,
+			HandshakeTimeout: proxyTimeout,
+		},
 		connectionsMap: make(map[string]*mcuProxyConnection),
 		proxyTimeout:   proxyTimeout,
 
@@ -1027,6 +1026,14 @@ func NewMcuProxy(config *goconf.ConfigFile) (Mcu, error) {
 		publisherWaiters: make(map[uint64]chan bool),
 	}
 
+	skipverify, _ := config.GetBool("mcu", "skipverify")
+	if skipverify {
+		log.Println("WARNING: MCU verification is disabled!")
+		mcu.dialer.TLSClientConfig = &tls.Config{
+			InsecureSkipVerify: skipverify,
+		}
+	}
+
 	if urlType == "" {
 		urlType = proxyUrlTypeStatic
 	}