Microsoft announces emergency security fix for Internet Explorer
17 12 2008
Microsoft is issuing an emergency fix to plug a security breach in its Internet Explorer web browser.
A loophole in the Internet Explorer software allows a web server to monitor the security passwords of users and to make their data vulnerable to misuse. To exploit this IE design flaw, users have to be lured to a malicious web page. Potentially this could result in banking information and other sensitive personal data being stolen, including passwords on gaming and adult websites.
The first attacks were reported to originate from malicious websites mostly in China and quickly spread to legitimate websites.
IE is used by 1 billion Microsoft customers around the globe, including users of IE7 and earlier versions of the browser. So far it is estimated to have affected up to 10,000 websites and over 2 million users of IE7.
Some security analysts have recommended that IE users switch to a rival browser such as Firefox, Safari, Opera or Chrome until the fix has been installed onto their PCs.
Microsoft have announced that they are issuing a critical fix for IE users commencing 18:00 on Wednesday 17 December. All users of IE5, 6, and 7 are advised to install it. A separate patch is expected to be made available for users of IE8 Beta 2 test version.
Users of Microsoft IE are highly recommended to enable Automatic Updates on their PCs or visit the Windows Update site
Click here to enable Automatic Updates - Microsoft automatic updates (page opens in a new window)
Click here to check your PC for the latest Microsoft Windows updates - Keep your computer up to date (page opens in a new window)
You can read Microsoft’s security bulletin here – Security bulletin published 9 December 2008 (page opens in a new window)
Always remember -
- Check under Tools – Internet Options: You get best protection when your system’s security level is set to High
- Make sure your operating system software, ant-virus, anti-spyware and anti-phishing programs are kept up to date.
Footnote:
On 9 December 2008 Microsoft issued a mammoth security update with patches for 28 vulnerabilities, including 23 categorised as Critical. This was the largest batch of fixes released by Microsoft in over five years.
Initial reports claim that this latest flaw is related to the notorious Blaster worm that infected millions of Windows PCs in 2003.
Back to top of page
© 2008 Copyright topenterprise uk ltd All rights reserved
Property of topenterprise uk ltd and made available under the terms of use notice on this web site
Click on any of the defining keywords below to search for specific matches: