Antivirus : Browsers don´t protect PCs

Jersey City, NJ, December 19, 2008 – Computer users around the world hastily switched from Internet Explorer to Firefox on Wednesday after learning that a vulnerability in IE left their computers exposed to malicious attack called IE XML Heap Corruption Vulnerability.

” These kinds of vulnerabilities occur in most software, ” said Melih Abdulhayoglu, Chief Security Architect of Comodo, a leading Internet trust and security company.

” Internet Explorer is the most popular browser in the world. Of course hackers are going to try to exploit it. The question is, why are people expecting their browsers to protect them from attacks? That’s not the browser’s job. It’s not a security solution. ”

” The solution is not to move from one browser to another. That is a short term and temporary fix. There will be other attacks on other browsers. You don’t need another browser. You need a solution. ”

” The IE XML Heap Corruption vulnerability was a kind of malware called a buffer overflow. For the last year and a half Comodo has protected millions of users around the world from those attacks by distributing the Comodo Memory Firewall™ for free. ”

” Browsers are getting more complex. More complexity means that more things can go wrong, which makes them harder to test for vulnerabilities. As we build more and more complex software it becomes more challenging to check for flaws. The more code added, the more moving parts the software has, and the more complex it becomes. Testing for all permutations of all scenarios becomes very difficult. ”

” People should expect attacks from unscrupulous hackers, ” Abdulhayoglu said. ” Computer users should use their browsers to browse, and they should install Internet security software, like Comodo Internet Security, to protect their computers. ”

” PC Security must focus on prevention, not on detecting problems already manifest. It’s much better to stop malware at the door rather than waiting until it’s on your computer. ”

” Comodo Internet Security is a prevention-based software suite and protects PCs regardless of which browser is used.

” Malicious software is growing increasingly sophisticated and there are many different ways to attack your PC. 25-year-old detection-based technologies, such as antiviruses, are totally inadequate today. Prevention is the key. With the acknowledged gaps in Internet Explorer, computer users are seeing a real-life example of the failure of detection-based antivirus technologies and the value of prevention-based technologies. ”

About Comodo

The Comodo companies provide the infrastructure that is essential in enabling e-merchants, other Internet-connected companies, software companies, and individual consumers to interact and conduct business via the Internet safely and securely. The Comodo companies offer PKI SSL , Code Signing , Content Verification and Email Certificate ; award winning PC Security software; Vulnerability Scanning services for PCI Compliance ; secure e-mail and fax services.

Continual innovation, a core competence in PKI, and a commitment to reversing the growth of Internet-crime distinguish the Comodo companies as vital players in the Internet’s ongoing development. Comodo secures and authenticates online transactions and communications for over 200,000 business customers and has over 10,000,000 installations of desktop security products.

For additional information on Comodo – Creating Trust Online® visit our website .

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Katharine Hadow
Comodo–Creating Trust Online
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Email: media-relations@comodo.com