X

France has joined Germany in warning its citizens against using Internet Explorer after the discovery of a security flaw in the browser that enabled the malicious attack against Google.

CERTA, the government agency for cybersecurity in France, issued a warning saying: “Pending a patch from the publisher, CERTA recommends using an alternative browser,” such as Firefox or Google’s Chrome.
While Microsoft stated in a security advisory issued 14 January that the only Internet Explorer software not affected by the Zero-Day exploit was IE 5.0 Service Pack 4 for Windows 2000, the company has now told BBC News that IE8 is the “most secure browser on the market” and people should upgrade.
The company is downplaying the effect on users. “Microsoft has not seen widespread customer impact, rather only targeted and limited attacks exploiting IE 6 at this time,” said director of Microsoft Security Response Center Mike Reavey in a post on the group’s blog.  
In a follow-up post, General Manager, Trustworthy Computing Security, George Stathakopoulos affirmed this message. “In terms of the threat landscape, we are only seeing very limited number of targeted attacks against a small subset of corporations. The attacks that we have seen to date, including public proof-of-concept exploit code, are only effective against Internet Explorer 6,” he said.
 

He continued, “We remain vigilant about this threat evolving and want to be sure our customers take appropriate action to protect themselves. That is why we continue to recommend that customers using IE6 or IE7, upgrade to IE8 as soon as possible to benefit from the improved security protections it offers.”

However, Graham Cluley of security firm Sophos told BBC News that although currently the only affected version was IE6, this could change, since details of the exploit are now available online, making it easier for hackers to alter the code to target the other versions.
“Microsoft themselves admit there is a vulnerability, even in IE8,” Cluley told BBC News. However, he added on his blog, “My advice is to only switch from Internet Explorer if you really know what you are doing with the browser you’re swapping to. Otherwise it might be a case of ‘better the devil you know’. Every browser has its security issues, so switching may remove this current risk but could expose you to another.”
Meanwhile, Microsoft is working on a patch for the problem, with no timeframe for when the patch will be ready. The UK government told BBC News that it will also be issuing a warning against using Internet Explorer.
728x90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
GOTHAM 728px x 90px France Warns Against Internet Explorer
4Square Media Banner Ads Update at 5 July JSAU05JUL1 MR 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Px7 S3 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Flick of a switch 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
JBL TourPro3 728x90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
appliance retailer leaderboard may 728x90 Hitachi updated France Warns Against Internet Explorer
AU X8 Banner 728x90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
ELX DIG Crosscat Promo 728x90 Mar25 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
FA 979 HN MDF SG14 14gen 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
MOTO 36331576 Q3 Ad Banners 728x90 2 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
BlueAnt 4SQM PumpAirUltra 728x90px France Warns Against Internet Explorer
728 x 90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
4Square Media Banner Ads Update at 5 July JSAU05JUL1 Buddy 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
BEL2535 BPB024 4SQ Banners 728x90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
HAIER Series 600 FLW HPD Pairs 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
FLOODLIGHT 2024 Banner 728x90px France Warns Against Internet Explorer
250527 SAV Channel news June25 Leaderboard 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Hisense KV BannerAd 728 90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Uniden Channelnews SoloX July 2024 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Marshall 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Westan 728x90px France Warns Against Internet Explorer
ChannelNews AZ100 728x90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
728x90 France Warns Against Internet Explorer
Skullcandy 728x90 1 France Warns Against Internet Explorer


YOU MAY ALSO LIKE