Does Web Browser Choice Affect Security?

"recent survey revealed that many people still don't realize how the OS might affect overall security.[...] For example, simple switching the OS can dramatically improve overall security."

Firefox is a mess of security holes. The thing has so many security holes it's already on its fifth version .. and it came out in December! That's almost a new version a month.

Patching for Internet Explorer, on the other hand, has decidely slowed. Most of the holes have been found long ago and patched.

My brother got his first virus after installing Firefox .. the Java that came with it had a security hole that let them walk right in.

Geesh.

Not using IE and opting for another browser will cause problems down the line for IT staff. IE is becoming the "Client" to many newer applications that Microsoft is releasing. These applications are highly desirable to business needs and if a policy of "No IE" is in use, I can see how some people will be out in the cold.

So we have IE. Target of the denizens of Information Technology Tartarus. If one moves to another browser it only creates another target. And IE can be secured to a large extent.

Thanks for a good article.

Another simple way to secure your system, regardless of browser used, is to NOT run as "administrator". Logon on the system with the lowest possible privileges needed (general user), which will limit the amount of damage any malware can cause.

asdf