Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Update Tuesday and Java flaw

Microsoft has a few bug-fix updates this Tuesday, nothing critical.

Java 7 update 7 has a new flaw that is being exploited from web pages. There isn't currently an update to fix this flaw yet. My recommendation is to disable Java except for when you need it. Alternatively you can uninstall Java 7 and install Java 6.

Steps to disable Java in major browsers:

Internet Explorer:
From the gear icon on the upper right select Manage add-ons.
Select All add-ons from the Show drop-down on the left.
Click on each Java add-on and disable it.

Firefox:
Select Add-ons from the Firefox menu at the top-left.
Select Plugins on the left.
Disable all Java plugins.


Chrome:
Type in chrome://plugins into the address bar.
Disable all Java plugins.
Note: Chrome will prompt before it runs the Java plugin so disabling Java in Chrome is not strictly necessary.

Enabling Java again follows the same steps just select enable instead of disable. You can enable and disable plugins without closing and opening the browser again. Only enable Java for trusted sites and disable it again when you are done.