Firefox Update

[Phuzzy4242]

Debaser recently posted a Shout about Firefox updating and his plugins not working correctly. Unfortunately, it's probably not Firefox that updated, it's Microsoft. As part of the .NET install/update, they install without your permission a Firefox extension to allow ActiveX installations - one of the gaping security holes that made a lot of people drop Internet Exploder for a better browser in the first place. Microsoft also makes it difficult to remove this crap. For instructions on removal, look at this article: http://www.annoyances.org/exec/show/article08-600.

Hope this helps, db.

[Quickone]

Good to know thanks.

[Pranama]

Thx Fuzzy to let us know it.

[Phuzzy4242]

Firefox's configured to automatically check for updates to inform you that you and available. When prompted, just click OK, the new version is downloaded and installed on your computer. You need to restart Firefox to start using the new version

This refers to a Windows update for their .NET framework - it installs an extension to Firefox that opens up a huge security hole that malicious web sites can use to install malware. You aren't warned, you aren't asked if you want to allow it, it just does it and makes itself difficult to remove. Most tech-savvy people use Internet Exploder only when they must - Windows updates, for instance. They use other browsers like Firefox or Opera for everything else, precisely because IE is such a security whore. IE has had a security update every month for the last ten years - they should have fixed the damn thing a long time ago.

The Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 update, pushed through the Windows Update service to all recent editions of Windows in February 2009, installs the Microsoft .NET Framework Assistant firefox extension without asking your permission.

This update adds to Firefox one of the most dangerous vulnerabilities present in all versions of Internet Explorer: the ability for websites to easily and quietly install software on your PC. Since this design flaw is one of the reasons you may've originally chosen to abandon IE in favor of a safer browser like Firefox, you may wish to remove this extension with all due haste.