Stop Using Internet Explorer

In a statement issued today (21st Jan, 2010), the German Federal Office for Security in Information Technology (known as BSI) recommends that all Internet Explorer users switch to an alternative browser. They may resume using Explorer after a fix is issued by Microsoft for a critical vulnerability that has been implicated in the Chinese cyber attack against Google. If you missed it, yesterday McAffee released a report outlining details of the cyber assault on Google and around 20 other major technology companies. It specifically implicates a critical flaw in all versions of IE that allows hackers to “perform reconnaissance and gain complete control over the compromised system.” Microsoft has responded that it is developing an update to the vulnerability. According to the statement from BSI, even running Internet Explorer in “protected” mode is not enough to prevent a hacker from exploiting this security flaw. IE, while the world’s most popular browser, has been steadily losing market share over perceptions that it is slower and less secure than rival browsers, especially Firefox.