Stop Using Internet Explorer

March 18, 2008

Did you know that some of the most popular forms of spyware specifically target vulnerabilities associated with Microsoft’s flagship web browser, Internet Explorer? Did you know that Internet Explorer has a disproportionate number of security vulnerabilities and associated patches compared with other software? Did you further know that in June of 2004 the US Government’s CERT (Computer Emegency Response Team) recommended that people stop using Internet Explorer because of issues associated with spyware and other forms of malware? Believe it or not, it’s all true. Incidentally, you can find the US CERT’s report which contains that recommendation here: http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/713878

There are a number of alternatives now that measure up or surpass Internet Explorer in terms of ease of use, speed, features, and security. Personally, I use a web browser called Mozilla Firefox and can’t recommend it enough. Firefox is an open-source web browser, which means that its source code is open for anyone to see and make changes to. Why is open source a good thing from a security standpoint? Well, because the software code is open to public scrutiny, developers can and do frequently analyze the code and look for ways to make it faster, more efficient, and more secure.

Some key facts about Firefox:

It is noticeably faster than Internet Explorer.

It has a richer feature set than Internet Explorer (including something called Tabbed Browsing which cleans up the “browser clutter” associated with multiple windows).

It offers a number of neat add-ons called “Firefox Extensions” that make your life a whole lot easier.

It does not have the same number of vulnerabilities as Internet Explorer.

It is not prone to the spread of spyware.

“But if I am keeping up with my security patches, what difference does it make which browser I use”? Well, that’s a fair point, but I would say two things in rebuttal:

1. Microsoft has been known to be tardy when it comes to the release of a security patch, often well after the details of the vulnerability have been released. This means that when using Internet Explorer, there is often a “window of exposure” associated with security vulnerability present for which there is no fix or remediation.

2. Do you really want to worry about all those patches? Sure, Firefox has had its share of vulnerabilities (remember, no software can be trusted, therefore no software is immune to security holes!), however the volume has been nothing like that for Internet Explorer.

But perhaps the biggest reason of all is that many forms of spyware specifically target vulnerabilities found in Internet Explorer. With facts like this, why not make the switch? Visit http://www.firefox.com to download Firefox today. Look for more posts coming soon showing you all the cool things you can do with Firefox!

Rating: 1 Star