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Internet Explorer Flaw

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me123

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There's a problem with Internet Explorer! :shock: News Story

A security flaw could mean that your passwords, and possibly personally details as a result, are not safe.

Could this be the opportunity for Firefox, Opera, Safari and newcomer Chrome to up the stakes? Certainly I wouldn't feel safe using Internet Explorer now (I only use it very occasionally when Chrome isn't compatible with the site). I can see a lot of users switching to Chrome personally as many trust the Google name. Although I can also see a push to Firefox as well as it's quite well known.
 
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mrcheek

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anybody still using IE should identify themselves on this thread. so we can all laugh at them....
 
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HSTfan!!!

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I use Firefox, always have done and I'm now on a mac having switched last week - can't go wrong lol =)
 
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mbonwick

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tbh, there's not a lot that separates this particular flaw from all the hundreds of others.
It seems that all IE flaws mean that a hacker could take control of your PC and nick everything from it.....


Just, the media got hold of this one!
 
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me123

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Well, BBC's artilce (posted above) is very professional: it clearly gives the impression that you will be the victim of identity fraud unless you stop using IE now. Of course, the article continues to explain that this is not actually the case, but people will just make the assumption that they're not safe online and follow the advice of the BBC (a reputable source) and switch. BBC also provide the links. Handy.

Not often I can accuse the BBC of scaremongering, but they are here. Still, at least it's for a good cause :razz:
 
P156KWJ

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IE's crap, Opera v9.62 FTW, fastest browser I've ever used, never bothered looking back to IE or any other browser :)
 
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mbonwick

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It's not as bad on school computers; it's very unlikely anyone will use them for important stuff like online banking. Even if a hacker managed to get the malicious code into a site that the firewall didn't block, he wouldn't find much on the network really - unless he wants schoolwork :lol:
 
Mintona

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I have always used IE, and I always will. Can't see a reason to change to something inferior now.
I can't even be bothered to install an antivirus on this computer.
 
Broken Viking

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me123 said:
There's a problem with Internet Explorer! :shock: News Story
A security flaw could mean that your passwords, and possibly personally details as a result, are not safe.
Click to expand...
Nowt new there...It's Microsoft's web browsing software - 'Nuff said! :lol::razz:

mbonwick said:
tbh, there's not a lot that separates this particular flaw from all the hundreds of others. It seems that all IE flaws mean that a hacker could take control of your PC and nick everything from it.....
Click to expand...
On any Windows XP (And presumably Vista) box, that could happen anyway if ye leave Port 3389 open to the Internet. That's the default port used by Remote Desktop Connection for Windows! :shock:

Chaz said:
Firefox is the answer.
Click to expand...
mbonwick said:
That's why I don't ever use IE.
Click to expand...
Another dedicated firefox user here, although I use the NoScript add-on to increase my security further by blocking any form of script, iframe and active control that comes from any domain that I don't already trust! 8)

On that note though, it's worth remembering that as Firefox and Chrome gain in popularity, the search for potential exploits by Black-Hats will increase further and further...And - As with any popular, complex application - Some exploits probabally will be found at some point...So remember to keep thyself up-to-date with any patches, updates, and new versions! ;)

Mind ye...Though it is rather insecure and useless for general web-browsing, I've also found IE to be the best and most user-friendly (Though basic) FTP client for my needs! :)

mbonwick said:
It's not as bad on school computers; it's very unlikely anyone will use them for important stuff like online banking. Even if a hacker managed to get the malicious code into a site that the firewall didn't block, he wouldn't find much on the network really - unless he wants schoolwork :lol:
Click to expand...
Ye'd be surprised as to what students might use the school network for. Aside from the usual lunchtime IMing and MySpace-ing, some students might also use the network for online banking or managing accounts with other online services (Online gaming being a usual example)...And it goes without saying that this is a very bad idea! :shock:

Personally, I do not trust online banking at all...And my bank account has online facilities fully disabled and unusuable for that exact reason. I also keep an account with a different bank especially for online purchases and importing/exporting cash from my PayPal account, and I only keep enough cash in both for transactions that I know I'll be making within the immediate future...Meaning that if my "internet" accounts were ever to become compromised and cleared-out, I would lose only the cash - Less than £100,- total - That I'd placed in there for imminent transactions! 8)

Farewell... <D
>> Death <<
 
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mbonwick

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What you say about browser popularity is absolutley true. Bugs have been found in FF, but we're only talking single figures IIRC, both in terms of number of holes and number of days taken to patch. With IE it's treble figures, on both counts.

Students may use school networks for banking admittedly, but if the schools anything like ours, all the banking, IM and social networking sites will be banned. So, that leaves passwords to places like here, and if I'm brutally honest, theres not really much to nick from here ;)
 
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Gizmogle

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I used school/college networks for IM and social networking stuff, but I think anyone that uses online banking on public computers are bloody stupid!
 
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me123

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^I've used Google Chrome and Safari, and they're both faster than Firefox in my experience. It still beats IE by a country mile though!
 
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laseandre

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Google Chrome is the fastest and easiest to use for me, used Opera and Firefox before and neither cut it for me.
 
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class 313

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me123 said:
^I've used Google Chrome and Safari, and they're both faster than Firefox in my experience. It still beats IE by a country mile though!
Click to expand...

Chrome is indeed faster, but that's because its a much 'lighter' browser.

The reason I use Firefox over other browsers (I have IE and Opera for backups) is because the amount of addons you can get for it. Sheer amounts of cool features which can do everything from improve security to improve your browsing needs.
 
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Broken Viking

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Liam said:
Indeed, Firefox loading lag pi$$es me off.
Click to expand...
Don't blame Firefox for that...Blame insted the overuse of AJAX on just about every modern website! :shock::roll:

I know that some people may like their interfaces drowning under a sea of Javascript...But personally, I think that using AJAX insted of proper serverside coding is a pointless exercise, IMO... <(
 
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If used in moderation then it can sometimes to a good addition to a website. However you should never rely on client side scripts for your site to function correctly. As you say, server side is the way to go for anything other than decoration. There's a couple of sites I've used in the past that completely fail to work if you turn off javascript :shock:
 
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yorkie

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Just get Ubuntu (which comes with Firefox), no worries then :D

If you get stuck ask me nicely on Messenger and I'll try to help.
 
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