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Microsoft has unveiled a new version of its Internet
Explorer (IE) web browser that has improved security
features. This was seen as a bid to counter the growing
threat from the Firefox browser. The new version of the IE
browser has also further increased the rivalry between
Google and Microsoft. |
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On April, 25, 2006, Microsoft Corp
(Microsoft) released a new version of its Internet Explorer
(IE) browser, IE 7 Beta 2. The browser, with tighter
security controls, also offered advanced features to users
while navigating the web. The browser development team at
Microsoft considered IE 7 Beta 2 to be a significant
improvement over the IE 6 version.
“IE 7 is feature complete and has been through significant
compatibility and reliability testing. People (especially
technology enthusiasts) will have a good experience with
it,”1 the team added. Experts were of the opinion
that Microsoft’s new browser was the company’s response to
growing criticism that its IE 6 browser had serious security
flaws which made users vulnerable to attacks from malicious
viruses and online phishing2 scams. |
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In January 2005, Secunia, a Denmark-based computer security company which
tracks vulnerabilities in over 9000 software products, had given the IE 6
their highest rating of “extremely critical” because of the high number of
flaws detected in the browser. The IE 7 Beta 2 version also provided users
with advanced features such as tabbed browsing, which allowed users to open
more than one site in one browser window.
The version provided support for RSS3 feeds that could be
incorporated in the page design. Color-coded warnings were provided in case
the user tried to access a website that was suspicious or fraudulent.
Microsoft had earlier released two test versions of its IE 7 browser named
the “Internet Explorer 7 Beta 2 Preview” in February 2006 and March 2006.
The final version of IE 7 was expected to be released in the later part of
2006 and to be included in Windows Vista, Microsoft’s new operating system
scheduled for release in January 2007.
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[1] “Microsoft expands browser testing,” www.bbc.co.uk, April 25, 2006.
[2] Phishing is characterized by attempts to fraudulently acquire sensitive
information, such as passwords and credit card details, by masquerading as a
trustworthy person or business in an apparently official electronic
communication.
[3] RSS is an abbreviation for rich site summary or really simple
syndication. It is a system that generates automated feeds such as weblogs
or news, specified in XML that can be used for web syndication.
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