19 January 2010, 13:41

UK Government won't issue Internet Explorer warning

The UK Government has decided that it will not be issuing a warning over the use of Internet Explorer. The decision, reported in The Telegraph, comes after both the German and French governments published warnings about the Microsoft browsers and its vulnerabilities. Germany and France have recommended that users install an alternative browser such as Firefox or Chrome.

According to the report, the government spokesman directed concerned readers to getsafeonline.org, a site co-founded by the UK Government, Microsoft, HSBC and the Serious Organised Crime Agency. The site has a section on security alerts and now contains a advisory for the IE vulnerability. The advisory only notes the vulnerability and has no advice on how to fix the issue, or any suggestion of working around the problem by installing an alternative browser. The report in the Telegraph quotes Microsoft UK's head of Security and Privacy, Cliff Evans, as recommending users of IE6 to upgrade to IE8 which is "less susceptible" to the exploitation.