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Dangers of ActiveX
and How to Disable It
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If you are concerned with the security of your computer, then it’s time to be
very concerned about ActiveX. Hacker attacks begin in lots of different ways,
but all the most vulnerable places in your computer can be infected when a hacker
manipulates ActiveX.
What is ActiveX?
ActiveX is a technology developed by Microsoft to enable websites to run Windows
programs over the internet and make the whole experience more interactive.
In the early days, the internet was built to be like a museum. You could view
things, but there was no interaction between you and what you were looking at.
ActiveX and other technologies like it have changed all that. With ActiveX, a website can be interactive and allow you to use tools such as
online mortgage calculators or online expense tracking tools. This technology has
made the Internet much more exciting and robust, but unfortunately, in the wrong
hands, ActiveX technology is easily exploitable.
Why is ActiveX Dangerous?
ActiveX controls are little pieces of code placed in web pages that download
Windows compatible programs onto your computer. While some ActiveX controls download
useful programs (like the mortgage calculator), hackers can also use ActiveX controls
to turn your computer against you.
In the wrong hands, hackers can use malicious ActiveX controls to infect your email,
sending viruses, Trojans and worms to every person whose email address you have.
Or an ActiveX control can be used to “dial-up” inappropriate websites that charge per
minute and run up huge bills.
Or even worse, a hacker could use an ActiveX control to turn your computer into a
“zombie”. Hackers accumulate huge armies of zombie computers and then use them to
launch DOS (Denial of Service) attacks on large corporate or even government networks.
Attacks of this nature are strong enough to shut down entire networks and bring
corporations to a stand still. In the past, these attacks have been aimed at entities
like Cisco Systems, CNN, the FBI and even NASA. Your computer could be part of it
and you wouldn’t even know.
And once an ActiveX control is installed on your computer, it is always available
to your browser, even without any interaction from you. An installed ActiveX control
has every capability within your PC that you do (and sometimes more). So, from a
hacker’s standpoint, anything goes once a malicious ActiveX control is installed.
How Can You Keep Yourself Safe?
ActiveX can be just as useful as it can be destructive, so it doesn’t really make
sense to block it completely. With its latest service pack (SP2) release, Microsoft
added some Internet Explorer features that check the electronic signature of ActiveX
controls and then prompts you every time an unsigned control is trying to download
onto your computer. But do you really want to be hassled with prompts and message
boxes in your internet sessions?
With Secure IE Browser Security, you can let the
Secure IE Security Manager take care of everything while you surf the internet
hassle free. The Secure IE Security Manager will allow ActiveX controls for websites
you trust and block controls from websites you don’t.
Secure IE also has the Secure IE Browser Shield that proactively filters out
prohibited ActiveX controls that you may not know about. With the Secure IE
Browser Security, you can cruise the Internet with confidence and leave the
management of your PC security to us.
Learn More About Secure IE...
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