Sophos Cloud Optix
Welcome to another episode of Techknow, the podcast in which Sophos experts debate, explore and explain the often baffling world of computer security.
In this episode, entitled All about Java, Paul Ducklin and Chester Wisniewski dig into the what, the how, and most importantly the why, of the popular programming language that dominated security headlines in August 2012 for all the wrong reasons.
Java brings with it some significant risks, yet for many people, it’s “just there on my computer.” And the reason it’s there is, “It’s always been there. And you need it for lots of websites, don’t you?”
Even in the business world, many organisations never quite seem to have got around to asking where, or even if, Java is needed on corporate assets such as laptops and servers.
In this quarter-hour podcast, Duck and Chet tell you All about Java (did you know it was originally named after a tree?), and help you to make an informed decision in balancing its risks and rewards.
Listen now:
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I have only just seen this article from ZDNet stating that the recent Java patch may have introduced a new vulnerability. I agree with your advice to uninstall or disable Java.
I uninstalled it 3 to 4 years ago and I have not regretted that move. I simply got tired of patching it constantly when I rarely used it.
Here is the link to the ZDNet article:
http://www.zdnet.com/oracles-emergency-java-patch…
Thanks.
Here is Sophos' more detailed coverage of the new Java vulernability:
http://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2012/09/03/java-s…
Thanks.
Chrome does prompt for java http://support.google.com/chrome/bin/answer.py?hl…
Lucian form Romania (hi, Lucian!) also pointed this out to us.
I pointed it out to Chester who admitted, "I hadn't noticed that Chrome had snuck that in" 🙂
This is a really easy to understand podcast that explains all of the intricacies of Java and how it is used in every day web browsing.
The advice about what we should do to stay to secure was also easy to understand and very helpful. Thanks for another great podcast.
Uninstalling Java is the way to go. Most people never need it, and it's so much easier to maintain a flock of computers without the constant need to update it.
This is good advice that more admins should follow.
whats the name of the plug-in i can download for internet explorer 2 warn me if sites r gonna use jave applets please??
I have only just seen this article from ZDNet stating that the recent Java patch may have introduced a new vulnerability. I agree with your advice to uninstall or disable Java.
I uninstalled it 3 to 4 years ago and I have not regretted that move. I simply got tired of patching it constantly when I rarely used it.