Though most current cyber attacks are originating from the web, near one in four, 23 per cent of internet users are still running old or outdated web browsers. This is according to research from IT security company Kaspersky Lab <http://www.kaspersky.co.uk/> . Of these, almost two-thirds (14.5 per cent) are using the previous version of a browser, while the remaining 8.5 per cent use obsolete versions.
The research, which analysed the web usage patterns of Kaspersky Lab’s customers through the cloud-based Kaspersky Security Network <http://ksn.kaspersky.com/en> , suggested that when a new version of a browser is released, it takes about one month for most users to make the upgrade. Yet cyber-criminals can move to exploit known browser vulnerabilities within hours, the IT company pointed out.
According to the findings, the most popular browser was Internet Explorer, used by 37.8 per cent of users, followed by Google Chrome (36.5 per cent) and then Firefox (19.5 per cent). Looking specifically at the proportion of users with the most recent version installed August 2012), 80.2 per cent of Internet Explorer users are currently using the most recent browser, followed by 79.2 per cent of Chrome users and 66.1 percent of FireFox users. The most notable examples of obsolete browsers are Internet Explorer 6 and 7, with a combined share of 3.9 per cent, representing hundreds of thousands of users worldwide.
Andrew Efremov, Director of Whitelisting and Cloud Infrastructure Research at Kaspersky Lab, said: “Our new research paints an alarming picture. While most users make a switch to the most recent browser within a month of the update, there will still be around a quarter of users who have not made the transition. That means millions of potentially vulnerable machines, constantly attacked using new and well-known web-born threats. This is strong evidence of the urgent need for proper security software which is able to react to new threats in a matter of minutes, not days or even weeks.”
With cybercriminals increasingly utilising vulnerabilities in web browser applications or outdated plug-ins, not updating browsers can have serious security implications for users. The latest research according to the IT firm shows that while the majority of internet users are diligently updating their web browsers in a timely fashion, there are still tens of millions of users that expose themselves by not updating these crucial applications.
While this report is primarily comprised of consumer user data, corporations should pay particular attention to the results, according to the IT security firm. As employees’ abilities to install updates are limited, using obsolete software is a common, and potentially dangerous, practice in business environments.
The full “Global Web Browser Usage and Security Trends” report, which includes secure web-browsing tips and recommendations for consumers and businesses alike, is available here <http://www.kaspersky.com/images/Kaspersky_Report_Browser_Usage_ENG_Final.pdf> .
