Internet Explorer, the most widely used web browser in the world, has often been in the news of late because of its involvement in the recent, well-publicized hack of Google and other corporations, allegedly by the Chinese government. Since a vulnerability in Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) is alleged to be one of the ways the hackers got into Google’s network, Google has joined the chorus of companies planning to phase out support for IE6 and are urging users to upgrade to Internet Explorer 8 (IE8). That chorus includes Facebook, YouTube, Digg, some European governments, and even Microsoft itself. There was even an “IE6 Must Die” petition on Twitter.
Now K-State is joining the chorus too. SIRT is proposing that on April 1, remaining instances of IE6 on campus be upgraded to IE8. For campus computers that use K-State’s central WSUS server, this update will be pushed automatically. System administrators managing their own WSUS environment or using some other way to manage application updates on Windows computers are urged to do the same.
If you have concerns about this update being pushed to campus computers on April 1, please discuss it with your SIRT representative or Harvard Townsend, K-State’s chief information security officer and chair of SIRT.
The user interface to IE8 is noticeably different from IE6 and will take some getting used to, but it is well worth it. You will be more productive and secure in IE8.
To see which version of IE you are running, open IE, select the Help menu, and select About Internet Explorer.
If you are not sure how you get your Windows updates or have other questions or concerns about moving to IE8, contact your IT support person or the IT Help Desk.
Why phase out IE6 and upgrade to IE8? (It isn’t just to follow Google’s lead.)
- IE8 has MANY additional security features that make it a safer browser to use.
- IE8 is a mature product that has been out for nearly a year.
- IE8 also has many new features that make it easier and more productive to use.
- IE8 has a “Compatibility View” that makes it backwards compatible with the few older applications that don’t work properly with IE8.
- Major applications and websites will soon cease to work properly with IE6, including Gmail and other Google applications.
- Applications developers at K-State will no longer have to write code and test their applications for compatibility with IE6, which will save them a great deal of time and therefore save K-State money.
- All major K-State applications work with IE8.
- IE6 is over nine years old, more than a lifetime for an application; it is time to lay it to rest.
