Advice to die-hard Windows XP users: Dump Internet Explorer

If you are still using Windows XP on your computer, you are now highly vulnerable to cyber attacks as Microsoft has stopped supporting this operating system effective last month.

Well, you can reduce that risk by more than half, according to security experts, by ditching Internet Explorer (IE) and use other browsers such as Firefox, Chrome, Opera, etc. Of course Microsoft disagree, but that's another matter.


Microsoft's support of Windows XP has ended on April 8, 2014 and there would be no more patches for security loopholes for this operating system.


Dump the Internet Explorer?

This seems to be the consensus if Computerworld is to be believed.

"By switching to a non-Microsoft browser, Windows XP users can halve the number of vulnerabilities that apply to the OS, according to a survey of flaws Microsoft fixed in the second half of 2013. 

The statistics support the advice from security professionals, who have recommended users run a rival browser to avoid some of the attacks aimed at their unprotected PCs. 

Microsoft stopped sending patches to Windows XP PCs last month. The ban also applies to any version of IE that runs on the aged operating system. But a tally of Windows and IE vulnerabilities patched from July to December 2013 shows that the browser poses a greater security risk to XP bitter-enders than does the OS itself. - CWM"

The article is elaborated further at Computerworld Magazine here. Take a look.


TheGreenMechanics: I currently have Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Microsoft Internet Explorer installed in my machine and I seldom use IE alone.