Patching Popular Software Vulnerabilities

The biggest risk for getting malware and virus infections is through out-of-date programs. The most notorious targets right now are Adobe Flash player and Java.

Both of these are programs running beneath the surface of your browser. Think of them as part of the engine to your car. If the browser is the windshield you look out of, these may be thought of as part of the car you don’t see, but need to drive at some websites.

The companies that make programs like Flash and Java do a good job at fixing security flaws as they are found, but if you don’t upgrade to the latest version of these, you will be vulnerable to attack.

The best way to keep these up to date is to use a third party tool. At this writing, no anti-virus products that are checking these components.

There are a few third party utilities which fill this void.

• Qualys BrowserCheck
  Qualys offers a more user-friendly product for the average non-technical user, but it only checks add-ons for the browser it runs in.

• Secunia PSI
  Secunia's product covers a wide range of checks. Secunia's primary business is security software and they house one of the most comprehensive vulnerability databases. All of our workstations have PSI installed. We wouldn't run any without it. Unfortunately, they only support Windows at this time.