GUEST EDITOR
Mike Poor is the guest editor for this issue. He is a senior
security analyst for the consulting firm InGuardians Inc.
(www.inguardians.com). Mike is also a senior instructor for
the SANS Institute and the track lead for one of SANS’ top
courses, SEC503: Intrusion Detection In-Depth.
OVERVIEW
Your Internet browser, such as Internet Explorer, Firefox,
Chrome, or Safari, is one of the primary tools you use to
interact with the Internet. Cyber attackers know this, which
makes your browser one of their primary targets. Also, your
browser may collect a great deal of personal information
about you that you may not be aware of. In this newsletter
we cover the steps you can take to protect both your
computer and your privacy.
KEEPING YOUR BROWSER CURRENT
The first step to protecting yourself is always using the
latest version of your browser. It does not matter which
browser you use; what is important is that you use the most
recent version of your browser. Cyber attackers are
constantly searching for, and finding, programming errors
and other flaws in browsers. These mistakes (often called
vulnerabilities) can be exploited, giving attackers access to,
and sometimes even complete control, over your system.
The companies that developed your browser (such as
Microsoft, Google, or Apple) release patches to fix these
vulnerabilities. By always having the latest version, you
ensure your browser has these known issues fixed. To
ensure your browser is updated, make sure the autoupdate
feature is always enabled in your browser and
operating system. Some browsers, such as Chrome,
automatically update themselves every time you restart the
browser.
PLUGINS AND ADD-ONS
Plugins (sometimes called Add-Ons) are additional
programs you can install in your browser. The problem
with these additional programs is they can expose you and
your system to greater risk. Each program you add to your
browser has its own unique vulnerabilities or weaknesses.
Courtesy:
http://www.securingthehuman.org/newsletters/ouch/issues/OUCH-201111_en.pdf
