Best Browsers for Security and Malware Prevention : Comparisons

Do you use a web browser to browse a USB thumb drive? If its for net access the browser doesnt matter if its sandboxed. Of course you will want an AV for OS based instances like network access.

 

Hi Kees,

I agree with your selection, and thanks for explaining in details why you picked these browsers. My wife prefers IE8 (familiarity) I'm addicted to Chrome's speed.

I just wanted to add that Chrome has its own warning system against infected sites (it has warned me very often about dubious sites). I do however always surf virtualized as I wouldn't trust any browser on their own.

 

Er... You stated you don't need an AV, I stated how your argument was flawed. Simple.

 

What about Chrome Plus ? Is it the Good One?

I am asking you guys because i have never tried anything except "Mozilla Firefox"..Even i don't know about Google Chrome Sandbox and Incognito mode...

 

Yes has some extra functionality like mouse gestures etc. It also offers startup parameters for Chrome and does not has the privacy issue.

With Chromeplus, you may want to add soe extentions like: New Tab Behaviour (or a simular), Adsweep or Adblock (I prefer Adsweep), flaskblock, WOT and SiteAdvisor. In the Wrench - option - under the hood there are settings for blocking content (cookies, pictures, plug-ins, javascript, pop-ups, location IP, this will be extended in the future)

 

The Incognito mode in Chrome is same as Private Browsing in Mozilla

 

So which is better in terms of privacy? Chrome or Chrome Plus?

I have heard that Chrome have some un-installation issue....Whereas ChromePlus don't have this issue.

 

Test on march the 11th of several browsers regarding speed, see pic

Overall Chrome and Opera fastest (browsing speed), then FF next IE8

Cold + warm startup time not shown also chrome and opera fastest

==> better software architecture means higher quality and less complexity ==> better performance & security

 

I said a browser and sandbox is better than an AV. I never said you dont need one. For browsing the internet if your sandbox is configured properly any browser is just as secure as any other.

 

I have never ever tried different browsers, because i m not very much concerned about them..But from last couple of days i following this thread and found its time to change my taste...

BTW thanks for the screen-shots, can you please provide me the link of the same? And why Chromium is not there? I guess its lil bit different from Google Chrome..

 

What I can see it is in Dutch. Chrome uses the same engine as Chromium, so the results would be the same. I will Google for you.

 

Thanks Bro...I am really angry today..I have some heated arguments with Norton Executive on chat as well as on phone...

Anyways i will try to use ChromePlus...

 

@ kees - could you explain a bit the figures in your post about browser speeds, what are these figures ?
Thanks.

 

EscapeVelocity - oh, its you again - lol

Considering Firefox, Safari, Opera or Chrome all of them are close to equal in safety.
Firefox and Opera have many updates - so i would choose one of them.

But the main potential hazard comes from Flash, Java, Javascript and PDF embedded in browsers.

vs/pro
- firefox:
pro - many updates, many extensions (also for safety)
vs: many extension, many plugins - both can blow - and they can produce
problems where firefox itself have none

- opera
pro - many updates, some extensions
vs - minority use

- safari
not sure if using mozillas gecko engine (same as firefox) or chromes webkit engine

- chrome
i'm no friend of google software - too much spy in it.
and chrome has become only some extension theses days

personally i am using firefox. i can modify it for my special needs without
lowering safety here. on opera it would be harder for me.
from my point of view firefox offers the best safety with extensions.
its a mainstream browser and nearly all vendors support it.

concerning speed. those tests mean nothing! it does not matter if the
rendering of websites is best although the time for loading from the web
is damn slow. it means nothing when the rendering is wrong (acid test).
it means nothing when plugins or extensions are loaded.

sandbox - pro for IE7/8 and chrome.
opera and firefox have NO built-in sandbox - a secure zone without a breakout
into the hosting system.
sandboxie can help but if you have a secure browser its not really needed.

i prefer firefox with 1) adblock plus, 2) noscript, 3) wot (or similar)
these extension filter malicious scripts and ads and warn on malicious sites.*

* ofc some antivirus software can do same but they are not updated that often

otherwise same as i wrote you before - check software out in a sandbox for testing purpose!
software is an agreement between usability, comfort and safety.

 

Thanks brummel!

I was reading that Firefox has Private Browsing and Opera has Private Tab function, Chrome has Incognito mode. Does IE have something similar?

It seems that ChromePlus or SRWIron are more private versions of Chrome, too.

Also I have problems with Opera not working properly with a website. I usually switch to Chrome. But Firefox and IE are rock solid in that department too.

 

"private browsing" is NO invented feature of firefox/mozilla.
And its NO security feature - sadly - so i never used it.

the one and only feature of "private browsing" is to prevent the most common
history files on a computer. but it can NOT block flash cookies which are stored
elsewhere in the computer NOR can it prevent extracting informations about
your browser or computer with javascript. (none of the browsers could that!)

some hint - think away from that crappy IE. neither or not its "sandbox"
its the most vulnerable browser of all!

 

It seems like IE is targeted more as well, no? Ive seen stats on browser use on an AV forum and IE was polling over 50% still, closer to 70%.

Ive long ago moved away from IE, though I have an instance of it, for occassional use, when MS Update wants to use it.

I heard IE9 isnt going to be un-usable on XP (maybe even Vista as well).....going all out on Win7.

 

It will be usable on Operating Systems that have support for GPU acceleration, that would be Windows 7 & Windows Vista Service Pack 2.

Do you really expect them to try patch something like that into a 10 year old operating system?

 

I dont expect anything, just stating what I heard. There wasnt an emotion lurking in my statement.

 

With so much opinions stated about browsers without backing it up with facts or explanation, this thread is beyond saving

IE8's sandbox is the protected mode it runs in, meaning LOW rights,
Chrome has a Sandbox and it tabs run with LOW intergity rights.

Running Low rights means that the OS prevenst the low rights proces/object from modifiying higher rights objects. With the protected mode side by side intrusions are still possible. Chrome prevents side by side intrusions with the additional sandbox mechansme

At the time IE6 released FF was the better browser. In the mean time IE8, Opera and Chrome have overtaken FF. Just for references: FF 3.6 has got cross site scripting protection mechansimes as a new feauture, IE8 had it with its initial release.

Kees bailing out

 

Regarding Chrome I don't like it for the same reasons bellgamin stated in this thread. https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=270705&page=3

Chrome plus could be better but it is from google and I don't trust google.

 

I agree with your posts. yes chrome has to much spy in it. And yes with all firefox's extensions it probably does provide the best security and privacy.

and in terms of speeds tests discussions in this thread it all depends on the users hardware pc specs and internet connection, these factors play a role, a certain browser may be faster on some ones pc than on another pc. I personally cannot see any difference in speeds in different browsers.

This is why I think Private browsing is totally pointless. You can disable history in options anyway. Sandboxie along with better privacy add on takes care of flash cookies.

With regards to extracting informations about your browser or computer with javascript. True indeed. Not many people are aware of this. Sad how there is no add on to prevent this. all tho there is an add on for FF called "Random User agent" which hides what OS system you are running, but there is still all the other things javascript leaks out ie time on your pc, screen resolution etc. The limited Options we have are VM or good quality VPN Proxies which filters all this out. How ever in some ways all this can be considered pointless
because some one can make a finger print of you, whether the information about your OS Javascript sends out is true or false or hidden some one can still make a finger print of you.

 

Shrug; you can look at SRWare Iron then... I'm using the 5.0.326 alpha version and it's very stable.

Well, if you don't trust Google then presumably don't use anything Chrome-based since it's based on code from Google. Kinda pointless debate in such case (while I agree with you wrt the broken Google Chrome install location plus that sucky Google Updater thing).

 

Question about Google ChromePlus.

With more than one user account on a computer how do you change the settings/home page etc. for each account?
If I set my home page and bookmarks in ChromePlus then switch to another user on the same PC I see the same homepage, same bookmarks, everything I set up under my account can be found under the second user account, this seems to be the only browser I'm having this problem with.

 

I wish i could use Chrome ,but they still have not fixed it.The number of people who complain about minimum font size and they still have not fixed it .There is auto zoom but this is just a bodge.