[opendtv] Re: Tide Turning in Browser Wars?

  • From: "John Willkie" <johnwillkie@xxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Thu, 1 Jul 2004 17:00:09 -0700

"endless vulnerabilities" is an interesting point, since in one week last
month, there were two Mac virii that -- as I predicted years ago -- affected
hundreds of computers around the world.  The problems were in OS 10.  I
heard that Apple supplied patches.  Let's see what the next moves are, but I
thought it apt to mention in this off-topic post, that not just PCs are
infected, it's just that the Mac target is smaller, and perhaps harder to
target.

Also, cellphone virii have been reported, and not on MS platforms.

That said, I'm helping a neighbor deal with the _hazafibb infection (and
perhaps more) right now.  Last night -- this is his third or fourth
infection this year, twice requiring a total reinstall of Win XP -- I got
his cheap self to agree that $30 a year for McAfee or Symantec was a good
thing.  This latest infection came despite him having the free AVG version.

I also noted last night that Computer Associates has virus protection for
PCs, Macs, Linux, Pocket PC ... (some might be more FUD than having real
problems.)

John Willkie

P.S.  Unfortunately, many problems with IE are not the browser itself, but
the Internet plumbing behind it.  EVEN IF YOU REMOVE IE, the internet
plumbing remains.  Many people with PCs know this, and it was a prominent
feature of the Justice Department case against MS.



-----Original Message-----
From: opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:opendtv-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Craig Birkmaier
Sent: Thursday, July 01, 2004 4:36 AM
To: OpenDTV Mail List
Subject: [opendtv] Tide Turning in Browser Wars?


Just when we thought the "browser wars" were over...

Looks like some Windows users are going to learn how difficult it is
to install and use an alternative Web browser to Micrisoft's flagship
"integrated" Internet Explorer.  I started hearing about the latest
vulnerabilities in IE several days ago, via a tech segment on our
local Talk radio station. The commentator is a side-kick on a local
afternoon show, who also runs a company that specializes in "Digital
Marketing" and PC maintenance/sales. Mr. PC's (no, I'm not kidding)
advice is to switch to the Mozilla browser.

Now the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team is recommending that
people stop using IE as well. Could the hackers finally be winning
the war, exposing Microsoft's seemingly endless vulnerabilities?
Could this kind of negative publicity wake people up to the options
that exist for running a PC today, without paying their tithe to the
boys in Redmond?

Regards
Craig


US-CERT ADVISES SWITCHING BROWSERS
In light of a recent announcement about an "extremely critical"
security vulnerability in Internet Explorer (IE), the U.S. Computer
Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) has issued a warning advising
computer users to stop using Microsoft's browser. US-CERT is a
nonprofit formed in September 2003 by the Department of Homeland
Security and the public and private sectors to improve computer
security preparedness and response. According to the US-CERT notice,
there are "significant vulnerabilities in technologies relating to the
IE domain/zone security model, the DHTML object model, MIME-type
determination, and ActiveX." The IE bug allows hackers to install
spyware on users' computers without any action on the part of the
user. The notice goes on to say that, particularly for browsing
untrusted sites, use of another browser is an effective way to avoid
the security risks mentioned.
Internet News, 29 June 2004
http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3374931


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