Firefox vs IE, in terms of security.

[kelly1985]

Hi, I read a news that there is a serious fault somewhere in IE that can create security issues. Does anyone know if Firefox has the same problem?

I seem to remember I read somewhere that Firefox is very secured, is that true?

 

[DavidC]

I'd be interested to hear views on this too. I've started using Firefox to avoid the latest IE problems but don't know if it is any better.

 

[rm2]

This is a good article to read on the subject:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2007/01/internet_explorer_unsafe_for_2.html

 

[blackhawk13]

--I use FireFox with JS Blocker, and have never gotten nailed to spite going to the worst sites I can find to try to shake it down in over two years. Temp folder infected files/cookies is the worst that has happened.
I refuse to use IE or Outlook. Bull's eyes are painted all over them.

NEVER leave any spam into your machine!!! Delete all spam and CC Jokes, etc on the server, or you will get plastered sooner than latter. Avoid all questionable downloads and always run hard and software firewalls. Configure Services properly to help lock down XP Pro.

-I shoot my images as I live, in the open-

'This verdict came down exactly 13 years after the verdict in his murder trial,' Kaelin said. 'If anybody believes in the number 13 and in karma, Simpson got his 13 years later.'

 

[Jogger]

The biggest factor in getting virii or other malicious programs is user behaviours (ie pr0n) .. but, FireFox with flash block, NoScript (a javascript blocker) is really safe.

Hi, I read a news that there is a serious fault somewhere in IE that
can create security issues. Does anyone know if Firefox has the same
problem?

I seem to remember I read somewhere that Firefox is very secured, is
that true?

 

[Akemi]

I surf from a usb stick with firefox. I would never use internet explorer in a million years. You don't even have to go to bad sites for the latest flaw to be exploited. Tying the browser into the operating system is a fatal error.

 

[spiked3]

I saw this article that caught my eye yesterday;
http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/12/15/1424239
which references http://www.info-svc.com/news/2008/12-12/

Basically it is comparing how browsers handle your passwords badly.

Anyhow, they score pass/fail on certain tests, IE7 got a 5, Firefox got a 7. They did not test IE8 beta2 which is more comparable to firefox 4.0.3.

The interesting thing is there is not a big difference in the case of passwords, and I suspect that is true for most cases. Firefox is slightly better, not hugely better. And guess what? You can run firefox all you want and you are not getting rid of IE on a windows machine. Microsoft chose to depend on IE for certain functionality in windows, and while you can make it not the default browser, you are not going to get rid of it and have a fully functioning OS. So you are basically only mitigating circumstances where your browsing habits expose the browser to a virus. You do nothing to prevent browser problems unrelated to what web sites you visit. If you want to avoid viruses, be a smart computer user and do not click every 'free smiley' offer you run across. Some people claim you need to have a soft and hard firewall to avoid viruses. That's crazy. I have been surfing since 92, basically when the internet became available to consumers, using windows, never owned an anti-virus program other than what came with windows, and have never had a virus.

Using firefox also makes you less of a target. Virus writers do not put the effort into attacking a small portion of the surfers. Up until very recently, Firefox (and apple etc) were less the 10% of the targets and no one bothered. But that is changing. Just last week Apple began advising users to run anti virus, and then quickly retracted the recommendation after they remembered it was a chief advertising tactic against Microsoft. But if Apple and Firefox's usage number continue to grow I expect you will see more equal attacks in terms of numbers against both IE and Firefox.

Bottom line; yes firefox is more secure. Is it a huge difference likely to affect you? Depends on how smart you are about using your computer. As far as feature set I do not see much difference between IE8 and firefox. If you are a casual user you might be a little better off with firefox, for a while.

--
http://www.pbase.com/spiked3

 

[JonathanF]

I have been using Firefox, then read this article http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=13669 about a study naming Firefox as unsafe.

You have to make your own judgement on what to believe. The article also says that Google Crome is more resistent to attack. That's what I am using now, occasionally switching back to IE when I can't stand the Crome interface.

--
JonathanF
Oly E-510, 11-22, 14-54, 18-180, TCON-17, FL-36
Canon S1IS, Casio QV-3000

 

[Mitrajoon]

How does that work?
--
Mitra
http://jmlphotography.smugmug.com/

 

[rlh1]

I have been using Firefox, then read this article
http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=13669 about a study
naming Firefox as unsafe.

This article was referring to the use of Firefox in a commercial environment where it can cause problems due to difficulties in rolling out security updates in the same manner that is usual with IE - see the comments which follow the article.

Firefox 3.0.4 with the usual Adblock and NoScript add-ons is currently safer than IE. Those very concerned about the vulnerability of their sytem could probably do a lot worse than look at Opera.

 

[MrPhotoBob]

The news on television just announced that Microsoft has stated that they have a flaw in IE and that they are recommending that people switch to Firefox and quit using IE until they have the flaw corrected. I just downloaded Firefox for the first time tonight and I must say that I really like it.

 

[blackhawk13]

The news on television just announced that Microsoft has stated that
they have a flaw in IE and that they are recommending that people
switch to Firefox and quit using IE until they have the flaw
corrected. I just downloaded Firefox for the first time tonight and
I must say that I really like it.
--

--Another good thing about FF is they are constantly updating it with new versions to weed out bugs and holes ASAP, something MS is unwilling to do.
I hate IE, it hurts to even use it now.

-I shoot my images as I live, in the open-

'This verdict came down exactly 13 years after the verdict in his murder trial,' Kaelin said. 'If anybody believes in the number 13 and in karma, Simpson got his 13 years later.'

 

[Grandcentral]

According to Boston.Com Microsoft is making an emergency patch for internet explorer tonight 12/16. Here is the link to the story.

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/12/16/serious_flaw_in_internet_explorer_not_fixed_yet/

 

[nand]

This is a good article to read on the subject:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2007/01/internet_explorer_unsafe_for_2.html

A two year old article is the best you can come up with?

Nand
--

 

[rm2]

According to Boston.Com Microsoft is making an emergency patch for
internet explorer tonight 12/16. Here is the link to the story.

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/12/16/serious_flaw_in_internet_explorer_not_fixed_yet/

Now we will have to see if the patch is any good.

 

[Limey]

Jonathan

What that article did not tell you, is that the Authors, Bit9, are a "Microsoft Certified Partner" and therefore possibly biased.

 

[blackhawk13]

Jonathan

What that article did not tell you, is that the Authors, Bit9, are a
"Microsoft Certified Partner" and therefore possibly biased.

--ha-ha, they must have confused FF with IE.

IE and Outlook Express are two of the best ways to experience malware without even trying.

Maybe they need to do some real time testing (use of) instead of researching (daydreaming up) articles, anyway the version that was a problem will be solved more than likely in the next FF release that appears almost instantly.

On a darker note, bookmarks in FF have gotten to be a real pain to delete in the latest versions. It takes forever to delete a group of them. It's also almost impossible to find where they "live" now to intentionally delete them all. The only complaint I ever sent to Mozilla, and of coarse no response or fix. Thanks for that FF, not appreciate or resolved!!!

-I shoot my images as I live, in the open-

http://www.pbase.com/blackhawkservices/world_of_trouble

'This verdict came down exactly 13 years after the verdict in his murder trial,' Kaelin said. 'If anybody believes in the number 13 and in karma, Simpson got his 13 years later.'

 

[rm2]

Someone is now trying to do some damage control by commissioning reports that paint Firefox in a negative light. Damage control anyone?

http://blogs.zdnet.com/security/?p=2304&tag=nl.rSINGLE

What is sad is that the article criticizes Firefox for actually and dutifully issuing patches when in reality they should be commended, especially since they are so prompt at doing so.

What is hilarious is the reason given for not including Internet Explorer on the report. According to the report itself, the real reason IE is not included is that the study had the following criteria for which apps to include:

"The application cannot be automatically and centrally updated via free Enterprise tools such as Microsoft SMS & WSUS."

So, please tell, is this a hatchet job or what?