Browser Security News

Redmond-based Microsoft has big hopes concerning the future edition of one of its flagship products, Internet Explorer 7. According to the company Internet Explorer 7 will be more adaptable to user’s needs and a lot more secure.

Microsoft’s group program manager for Internet Explorer, Tony Chor, who outlined the new features of the browser at a Webstock web design conference recently, said most importantly the new version improves the browser’s security, one of the most contentious issues involving users of IE6. He said while it is "architecturally more sound", it will use colors in the address bar to indicate the safety of sites. Green will denote safe sites, red for known phishing sites and yellow for suspected ones. Chor said this feature has prevented 50,000 phishing attacks since the second beta version was released in late April.

The previous version of IE, launched in 2001, has been the target of many Internet attacks, be it viruses, exploits, worms, etc. causing huge damages to both home users and corporate segment. IE7 is currently in its second beta version and the final version is due to be released in the second half of this year. IE7 borrowed some features from other browsers, such as Firefox and Opera, including tabbed browsing, but takes many of these a step further. Internet Explorer 7 boasts a cleaner look, eliminating buttons on the previous version that weren’t often used, such as "discuss". Menus are hidden by default, giving more space to the webpage. A search box sits to the right of the address bar - MSN is the default but this is easily changed. "Browsing is the number one activity people do with their PCs," Mr Chor says. "And most people start their Web browsing session by searching." IE 7 expected to be faster, more secure and more appealing - Tech News - Playfuls.com - Science & Technology