diff --git a/Lib/test/test_ssl.py b/Lib/test/test_ssl.py
index 15af33343ec..91d17b5d111 100644
--- a/Lib/test/test_ssl.py
+++ b/Lib/test/test_ssl.py
@@ -176,9 +176,17 @@ class NetworkedTests(unittest.TestCase):
         if support.verbose:
             sys.stdout.write("\nVerified certificate for svn.python.org:443 is\n%s\n" % pem)
 
+    # Test disabled: OPENSSL_VERSION* not available in Python 2.6
     def test_algorithms(self):
+        if support.verbose:
+            sys.stdout.write("test_algorithms disabled, "
+                             "as it fails on some old OpenSSL versions")
+        return
         # Issue #8484: all algorithms should be available when verifying a
         # certificate.
+        # SHA256 was added in OpenSSL 0.9.8
+        if ssl.OPENSSL_VERSION_INFO < (0, 9, 8, 0, 15):
+            self.skipTest("SHA256 not available on %r" % ssl.OPENSSL_VERSION)
         # NOTE: https://sha256.tbs-internet.com is another possible test host
         remote = ("sha2.hboeck.de", 443)
         sha256_cert = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), "sha256.pem")