Internet Explorer 7 vs. Firefox 2.0

Internet Explorer 7 for Windows XP was released on October 18, 2006. Firefox 2.0 followed it a week later on October 24. A few days short of three months later, which is the better browser? Which one should you choose? Considering the facts from an objective perspective that is neither bias to Microsoft nor to open source, what is the better choice for consumers?

Well, Internet Explorer 7 is, at least security wise. Let's leave everything else aside for a moment and just focus on the security aspect of the two browsers. Generally speaking, Mozilla's Firefox has the upper hand here compared to Internet Explorer. But both browsers have been used as attack vectors in the past. So, did the release of Firefox 2.0 and Internet Explorer 7 change anything? Yes, it did.

Firefox 2.0 users have noticed that starting on December 19, 2006 Firefox 2.0 installed Firefox 2.0.0.1 update. Firefox 2.0.0.1 contained security patches for eight vulnerabilities in the open source browser, five of which received a critical level of risk assessment.

By contrast, Internet Explorer 7 performed surprisingly well in the same period. Microsoft patched a total of zero vulnerabilities in the browser.

The November and December "Critical update applied to all supported IE configurations from IE5.01 to IE6 for XPSP2 and IE6 for Server 2003 Service Pack 1 except IE7 where the associated vulnerabilities do not affect this newer platform," Charles Watanabe, Microsoft Program Manager on November 14 and December 12 2006.

And in January: "I want to mention that IE7 on Vista IS NOT affected by this vulnerability as a newer version of the control was released in Windows Vista," stated Geoff Silva, Microsoft Program Manager.

Make no mistakes about it, Internet Explorer 7 vulnerabilities will come. It is only a matter of time. But, for the time being, IE has switched places with Firefox and has provided a safer browsing platform.

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