Microsoft admits to Internet Explorer problems

20 Dec 2007

Microsoft has admitted that last week's IE security patches did cripple the browser for some users, but rather than rework the fix, the company has offered a registry hack workaround.

The confirmation and workaround came a week after users installed Security Update MS07-069 on 11 December, and users began reporting they were unable to connect to the Internet with IE or that the browser kept crashing. MS07-069, one of seven bulletins issued on December's "Patch Tuesday," fixed four critical vulnerabilities in IE 5.01, IE6 and IE7.

Microsoft has now owned up to the problem. "On a Windows XP Service Pack 2-based computer, Internet Explorer 6 may stop responding when you try to a visit a website," said Kieron Shorrock, the program manager responsible for IE at the Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC).

In a later post to the MSRC blog, Shorrock downplayed the problem, saying, "We have been working with a small number of customers that reported issues related to the installation of MS07-069." He claimed that the bug appeared only in what he called "a customised installation."

"This isn't a widespread issue," Shorrock added.

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