Software for Secure Computing: Firefox & NoScript

Everyone agrees that it just isn’t safe out there on the Wild, Wild, Web and while Microsoft has made huge strides in securing Internet Explorer, the fact that IE continues to use ActiveX scripting technology makes it the least secure browser. I often recommend that people not use IE unless they have to and if they have to, to run it in a sandbox or virtual machine. An application sandbox such as SandboxIE protects your system from malicious scripts by allowing them to run only in the protected area.

There’s a much better approach, however: switch to Firefox and take advantage of the free Firefox add-on, NoScript. NoScript takes a “default deny” approach and prevents all scripts on a site from running unless you explicitly permit them.  NoScript is also effective against the latest clickjacking attacks. My article, “How to Protect Yourself from Clickjacking,” over at Dave’s Computer Tips describes the configuration options for both IE and Firefox with NoScript installed.

Switch to Firefox, install NoScript, and enjoy secure computing.