web browser

German security technologies company Sirrix AG has recently released what some critics are calling the most secure web browser in existence: a sandboxed version of Mozilla firefox, known as BitBox. What makes this variation of Firefox most ... intriguing is that the web browser runs completely independent of Microsoft Windows. The program uses VirtualBox 4.04 (a software virtualization program by Sun Microsystems) and a securely locked-down ("hardened") implementation of Debian 6 Linux. The web browser (Firefox 4) then runs in a virtual machine with its own operating system (Debian 6 ... (view more)

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is promoting a new campaign that would enable users to stop advertisers from tracking their online behavior. Similar to having your telephone number appear on the "Do Not Call" registry, the FTC believes that ... having your web browser set to "Do Not Track" (DNT) would make for a safer online environment. In activating the Do Not Track feature, your web browser sends out a virtual message to the website, asking the advertiser(s) not to track you. The message is repeated on every website you visit. Activation Control at the Discretion of the User Do Not Track ... (view more)

Cloud-based security company "Zscaler" has launched a new Firefox web browser plug-in called "BlackSheep" designed to protect users against a recent browser hijacking tool that allows just about anyone to potentially hijack your web browser session. ... Firesheep: A 'Peculiar' Extension In order to explain the details of how "Blacksheep" came to be, we need to take a few steps back. In October of this year, a Firefox plug-in dubbed "Firesheep" was created. It was an extension put together by developer Eric Butler and demonstrated at the Toorcon security conference. ... (view more)

Mozilla has released the first minor point release in its Firefox 3.5 series, Firefox 3.5.1. The reason? To fix a critical security flaw within the browser's TraceMonkey JavaScript engine. Rest assured, TraceMonkey itself, despite the suspicious ... name, is not a new Conficker virus or something of the sort. On the contrary, TraceMoney is a tool created by Mozilla that improves the JavaScript web browser performance through something called a just-in-time, or JIT compilation engine. Simply put, JIT compiles code earlier and improves the performance of the Mozilla web browser. Mozilla Tracing ... (view more)

The European Commission has once again attacked Microsoft for bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. The EU (European Union) body recently ruled in principle that such behavior breaches European competition laws. The ruling concludes a year-long ... investigation which is the latest in a series of battles between European regulators and Microsoft. In one case, involving the inclusion of Windows Media Player in Windows, Microsoft was fined a total of $745 million. The European Commission is the executive wing of the European political system: it carries out the laws made by politicians. Its new ... (view more)

For the past few days, users of Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) have been urged by experts to switch to another web browser until a serious security flaw could be resolved. Microsoft asked its users to remain vigilant while they investigated the ... issue, which could allow criminals to take control of anyone using Internet Explorer and steal passwords and personal information. (Source: bbc.co.uk ) Attacks have been detected against IE 7.0 but the "underlying vulnerability" was present in all versions of the browser, and the problem could well encompass other versions of IE in time. Mozilla ... (view more)

Our own Ian Paul recently reported the release of Firefox 3, the much anticipated new web browser from Mozilla. After some time in circulation, it's receiving some very impressive reviews and equally impressive download numbers: 8.3 million copies ... the first day. The staggering download numbers have attracted the good people of Guinness World Records, although the record still needs to be verified, which could take a few days. Impressive? Not when you consider that Guinness has never before recorded such a record, and it took Mozilla needling them for anyone to take much notice. Still, it's ... (view more)

After almost three years in development, the Mozilla Foundation released Firefox 3.0 yesterday. This latest and much anticipated iteration of the world's second most popular web browser has gone through three release candidates, and has been getting ... a lot of positive early reviews. Analyst Walt Mossberg said, "Firefox 3.0 is the best Web browser out there right now...it tops the current versions of both IE and Safari in features, speed and security." In addition to improvements in speed, security, and usability, the browser is also fashioned to look like a native application in all three ... (view more)

Although it has held on for a long time, the Netscape browser will pass into the great digital afterlife early this year. Tom Drapeau, Netscape's Director, announced in a blog post that AOL will discontinue product support for Netscape Navigator on ... February 1, 2008. After that Drapeau recommends Navigator users switch over to Mozilla Firefox, the popular open-source web browser on which Netscape is based. (Source: netscape.com ) Netscape was a popular browser until Microsoft released Internet Explorer, setting off the so-called 'browser war'. IE eventually won that battle, and Netscape was ... (view more)

Mozilla recently released a new update of its Firefox Web browser, version 1.5.0.4. The update is to fix 13 security holes. Mozilla stated that at least five of these vulnerabilities could let attackers install software via the web without the ... knowledge from the user. Other security fixes included: privilege escalation, file stealing, buffer overflow, and potential memory corruption. (Source: WashingtonPost.com ) For those not familiar with the Mozilla name or the Firefox line of web browsers: Firefox is a free, standards-based Web browser with support for multiple platforms, including ... (view more)