A New Browser War

At an industry conference in February, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates said Microsoft will release Internet Explorer 7 later this year with improved security capabilities, including anti-phishing technology. InformationWeek reported on February 15th that Internet Explorer's market share had decreased to 90% at the end of 2004 from about 97% in May. Microsoft hopes the new version will keep more users from switching to Macintosh computers or to alternative browsers such as Mozilla and Firefox.

If you are using Mozilla or Firefox, know that vulnerabilities have recently been found in the software. Make sure you check to see if upgrades are available for you to download.

Sterling invests a lot of time, passion, and resources in security related initiatives for our network and the services we provide. We hope the competitive browser wars end up producing new levels of increased protection for all.

Did you know?

1. For the week ending March 1, Sterling Communications blocked: 1,805,668 spam emails and 36,646 viruses. We'll continue to work hard to keep you safe on the net.

2. Sterling's new Voice over IP Phone System service (Sterling Voice) has surpassed 750 users. If your phone system is ready to be replaced, make sure you contact Sterling sales to find out why so many are moving to this upgrade in technology. (demo)

3. You can access your Sterling email account when you travel. Simply point your browser to www.sterling.net, and click the "webmail" link in the upper right hand corner of our site.

Four Reminders to Protect Yourself from Computer Threats

1. Keep your operating system and Web browser updated. Make sure you install "critical updates." If unsure whether an update applies, you probably should install it. If you're using Microsoft Windows, go to www.microsoft.com and click "office update" in the "Product Resources" section on the left side of the web page.

2. Unless you need them, make sure you turn off the "file sharing" option on your computer. Use the help menu if you need to find out how to do this.

3. Do not respond to spam email messages if they get through to you. And if you don't know the company, do not click on the message that says something along the lines of "click here to be removed from our mailing list." All this does is verify your email address and exacerbates the problem.

4. Avoid sending personal information in emails over the Internet. This includes credit card information. If you're ordering online, make sure the browser shows you have an encrypted connection (the site should show "https" in the browser window). You can also protect yourself by using a separate credit card - with a low credit limit - for online purchases.