Today we are going to talk about the safety of Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is the original browser that has shipped with all versions of the Windows operating system. Internet explorer has had a very rocky past with numerous hacks and security flaws and is almost always the target of Malware and hacker attacks. In addition to the many security flaws, there has also been a large amount of performance issues as well. In some of the later versions of IE from IE 8 and later, there have been numerous complaints of web pages not loading or sometimes loading very slowly. These issues still remain as Microsoft continues to roll out new versions of the famous browser. The newest version is IE 10, which will be released, with Windows 8 late in October.
As of this writing, there is yet another reason to stay away from Internet Explorer. Microsoft has found a severe vulnerability in all versions of Internet Explorer that could allow a hacker to take total control of your computer. All you have to do is go to an infected website and the program will download to your system and the hacker can have his way with your system. There is no word on when a fix will be issued but security experts are warning people to either up the security settings on your Internet Explorer or use an alternate browser. Given the fact that upping the security settings will make the browser almost unusable, using a different browser is the best choice.
Many software companies that create programs for professionals such as Real-Estate agents and the like have not updated their software in years. Some of these programs will only run on older versions of Internet Explorer. These venders are creating a high-risk environment for the offices that are forced to use them. These venders of these programs should put what is needed into the software so that they will run with other more secure browsers such as Firefox and Maxthon. We have seen some programs that companies have to use IE 7 with. This is a very dangerous practice that should be addressed by the distributors of the software.
If you are a professional using a proprietary software for your business and you have to use IE or an older version of IE, check with your company to see if any updates are available and if not, encourage them to create an update that will allow your business to run more safely.
Microsoft is working on the fix as we speak but it is unknown when the patch will be offered. We might not see it until patch Tuesday the second week of November. Microsoft began to act on taking care of this dangerous exploit as soon as it was discovered. My advice to all is to use another browser. Not just now, but for good. Any of the main alternates such as Firefox, Chrome and Maxthon all offer great security and speed along with lots of great features.
Author: Joe Zelenak, Staff Writer
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