Re: Spyware and Adware affect every internet user

Sebastian Gottschalk <seppi@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in news:4bq5ogF121a1tU1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx:

Irrelevant. I'm positive that any current web browser will have a
security related patch before the year is out.

I'm still looking forward for a vulnerability in my secure configuration
of Firefox (which has JavaScript enabled BTW). As far as Bugzilla and
certain security vendor tell there has been no security issues that
applied to my configuration since Firebird 0.9 (!), so I've worked
around it / hardened before discovery of the problem. The only issue in
Firebird 0.8 was a memory leak in JavaScript's RegExp object
implementation, so no big problem either. Firebird 0.6 certain was
exploitable.

So let's say you are running the 'secure' Firefox 1.5.0.2. Why would you need to install 1.5.0.3?

Because 1.5.0.2 has a critical security flaw and is in fact not 'secure'. Of course the user thinks it's secure
right up until the vulnerability is discovered. So it's not that the browser was 'secure' just that it appears to be
'secure' because no known vulnerabalities existed at the time of release. The software engineers have done
their best to make it 'secure' but somehow something was missed.

You then update to the 'secure' Firefox 1.5.0.3 and you are now sure to be safe.

I am extremely confident there will be a critical security flaw in this or an upcoming version of Firefox so in fact
1.5.0.3 is not 'secure'.

Regardless of the browser you use there are going to be serious, but as yet undiscovered/exploited flaws. So
find a browser YOU like, keep it patched, learn and use it's security features, practice safe surfing and you will
likely be as safe as you can be.

To say browser A is 'safer' than browser B is a comparison that is near impossible to make because of many
mitigating factors including the OS, the browser version/settings, browser plugins/extensions, firewall, AV
software, patches installed and the person at the keyboard.

Once people realize security is a process and not software or hardware they will then understand the
regardless of the configuration they run they are not completely 'secure'. The best they can do is find a
comprimise between security and usability that is acceptable to them.

This is why we have choices in OS's, browsers, AV software etc. as they offer varying levels of security and
functionality so that we as users can pick the ones that best meet our needs. I've tried most browsers and
settled on Avant (IE shell...had tabbed browsing before Firefox even existed). You obviously have gone
another route. To say you have made a better choice or have a more 'secure' browser is a fallacy. Since
neither of us have had 'security' incidents they APPEAR to be equally 'secure' and what's 'best' for me may be
useless to you and vice versa.
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Critical error 101 on MS AntiSpyware install
    ... Not to mention everyone and their brother that is on the firefox high ... low and behold - Windows Help opens up - hum, ... because the one thing that was on on my little browser was the little ... Just use windows security, and not ignore ...
    (comp.security.misc)
  • Re: Critical error 101 on MS AntiSpyware install
    ... Not to mention everyone and their brother that is on the firefox high ... low and behold - Windows Help opens up - hum, ... because the one thing that was on on my little browser was the little ... Just use windows security, and not ignore ...
    (comp.security.firewalls)
  • Re: Where is the notificiation about IE zero day vulnerablity?
    ... >> protected your Firefox web client. ... >> the popular web site written a thing about it. ... this is a serious a security hole as there ... > about how it was poised to be the one browser to finally beat Microsoft at ...
    (microsoft.public.security)
  • Re: What is the most secure web browser,
    ... > the most secure graphical browsers. ... > security of the browser can be defined within the ... > browser itself or by restricting the sites the users ... > D) Disable certain bugs by event correlation (I think ...
    (Security-Basics)
  • Re: What is the most secure web browser,
    ... > obviously not the secure web browser of choice. ... (I don't think I've heard of a security bug in lynx, ...
    (Security-Basics)