Experts are warning people away from Internet Explorer – not just because other browsers are better, but because of a huge security flaw that exposes users to the risk of unapproved access and stolen passwords.
Microsoft has revealed that it has detected attacks against IE 7.0, but has said that the underlying vulnerability is present in all versions. The company is working on an emergency patch but because hackers found out about the flaw before Microsoft there have been reports of between 6000 and 10,000 websites being compromised.
So far, the majority of the attacks have been on Chinese websites with criminals looking to steal passwords for computer games before selling them on.
While Internet Explorer is the default browser for most computers, experts have suggested that IE users look elsewhere for a was to surf the net; Chrome, Firefox, Opera and Safari are not thought to be vulnerable to the identified flaw.
The advice comes just days after Microsoft released its biggest batch of fixes in five years – attending to 28 bugs, including 23 critical vulnerabilities. They are currently looking into the issue and hope to release a fix outside their monthly updates. Microsoft is recommending users follow the “Protect Your Computer” guidelines that include enabling a firewall, making sure software is up to date and installing anti-virus and anti-spyware programmes.
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