WEB BROWSER AND SECURITY

A browser is a program that lets you surf the web. Currently the most popular browsers are Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator.

A browser runs on your computer. When you type in a URL or click a link, your browser sends a request to the remote server specified in URL. For example, if you surf to www.microsoft.com your browser will send a request to Microsoft's web server. The web server will send back a reply - usually a web page. Your browser will receive it and show it to you. Sometimes the browser will call other programs to display types of data it doesn't know how to deal with. For example if you click on a link to PDF document your browser will start a program that displays PDF files, for example Adobe Acrobat Reader.

To the end-user, Web surfing feels both safe and anonymous. It's not. Active content, such as ActiveX controls and Java applets, introduces the possibility that Web browsing will introduce viruses or other malicious software into the user's system. Active content also has implications for the network administrator, insofar as Web browsers provide a pathway for malicious software to bypass the firewall system and enter the local area network. Even without active content, the very act of browsing leaves an electronic record of the user's surfing history, from which unscrupulous individuals can reconstruct a very accurate profile of the user's tastes and habits.

Bogazici University Computer Center - 34342 Bebek, Istanbul
(0212) 3594700-3596445