You might have gotten wind of this, there is an unpatched vulnerability that affects the Internet Explorer web browser, versions 6 through 9, affecting Windows XP, Vista and 7, being exploited in the wild. Unpatched meaning there is no resolution made available to remedy the weakness, therefore it can be used by malware creators and other hackers to take control of users’ computers if and when websites set up to exploit the vulnerability are visited.

Although Microsoft releases updates and patches on the second Tuesday of every month, due to the severity of this one it is releasing an out-of-band update tomorrow Friday the 21st. It will be available through Windows Update. If you use Internet Explorer, it behooves you to apply that patch as soon as it’s released tomorrow.

On a related note, I personally don’t know why people still use Internet Explorer. Perhaps out of habit, having used it for years. But Internet Explorer is from my point of view, the worst browser available. Any of the competition ones, Firefox, Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Opera, is preferable and more secure, faster and more stable. I’d recommend ditching Internet Explorer after test driving several browsers to find the one you like the most.

I’ll be glad to answer any questions on Windows Updates or different web browsers.