Hi twl845,
Well IE is an integral part of the Windows OS. There are a couple of reasons why it would be unwise to remove IE from the OS completely (if that could be done). Windows for the first time for IE8 promised to strictly keep up to web standards, other browsers try to get bundled too with an OS like GoogleChrome recently, and Firefox already existed before the so-called browser wars - it just changed its identity, for a lot of users it would be a puzzle as what alternate browser to install, as IE is a synonym for browsing, and that would or could lead to additional crapware, and we have already a lot of that (browzar = IE-clowning shellcode, etc, they build a Pr0n-button and "they are state of the art"
.)
What integrating brought IE as a benefit, and what other browsers are lacking is, that part of the browser starts already as the OS starts, well could be expected as it is part of it.
Browser comparison in a lot of cases goes like a conversation on culinary tastes. There is no...etc.
The minuses of IE is that a lot of users don't configure it like it should come, and that is
not-out-of-the-box, but a lot of normal users don't know anything else, launch and click, click, click > malware..
For all browsers it is better to use the application with normal user rights, it can do less harm that way..
Then the browser security discussion has not that long of a history. A lot of even browser developers did not code with security at mind in the previous century or even some years ago. And fuzzing a browser does not give you design flaws - especially the flaws that are exploitable. There still is not a common security policy to be implemented into all browsers to prevent for instance the storm of SQL I-frame malware installs etc. It does not exist or there is just a general outlay to plan it...
It seems that NoScript in Fx is more or less their last bastion that has not been circumvented, and still stands as a rock.
Perspectives, RequestPolicy, CSP firekeeper and TDN all help towards a more secure Fx or Flock browser, but there is still along way to go, and the interests of web-developers, click-stream-trackers and profilers to bend the security rules a bit or byte to make that functionality possible does not help either towards that goal of better security.
There are people that are directing these questions of in-browser security. I am one of them. So let us join forces together and make all browsers more secure,
polonus
