RSSIE7 to Support International Domains
By Nate Mook | Published December 22, 2005, 2:23 PM
Microsoft said this week that Internet Explorer 7 will finally provide support for international domain names (IDN), detailing a number of security measures it will put into place to prevent phishing and spoofing attacks. Firefox, Opera and Safari implemented similar protections earlier this year.
The problem with IDN stems from its use of the Unicode character set to enable domain names that include international letters. Unicode URLs must be converted by a Web browser into a format called "Punycode," which opens the door for a malicious Web site to mimic a trusted URL, including its SSL security certificate.
Opera was the first to tackle the problem in February, adding a yellow security bar to show the name of the organization that owns the SSL certificate and only displaying IDN URLs for certain top-level domains certified by the company.
Apple followed suit with an update to Safari in March, making the browser display URLs with non-approved characters in their native Punycode form. Firefox initially removed support for IDN altogether, then added the feature for certain top-level domains with anti-spoofing policies.
Instead of white-listing specific domains, Microsoft has taken a different approach with IE7. The browser will detect what language scripts are being used in the URL and if it contains characters outside the chosen languages, IE7 will display the domain name in Punycode form.
The idea is to prevent a mixture of characters that could lead to spoofing, without taking away from IDN's usefulness.
"There is little doubt that showing the Punycode form leaves no ground for spoofing using the full range of Unicode characters; however, showing Punycode isn't very user-friendly," says IE developer Vishu Gupta. "We do not describe “other language” URLs as 'suspicious' because such URLs are completely harmless when displayed in Punycode form."
If IE7 does display a domain name in Punycode form rather than localized, an information bar will appear to notify the user. From the bar, a user can choose to add the language to their list of allowed scripts.
"Users who allow Greek in their language-settings are as susceptible to Greek-only spoofs as the population using English is susceptible to pure-ASCII based spoofs," added Gupta.
Beta 2 of IE7, due early next year, will include the IDN changes.
For those not interested in visiting international domain names and wanting to avoid any risk, Microsoft has added an "International" section to the Internet Control Panel that contains an option to disable the feature entirely and revert back to IE6 behavior.
It's hard to imagine how Firefox could survive anything beyond short-term fame if Microsoft put serious work into IE.
I love Firefox (it's my browser of preference) but if IE was as good as Firefox then I'd be hard pressed to keep using Firefox due to some of its small "weird" occurances (granted very rare).
Score: 0
|This has been my position too which I've posted earlier this week on BetaNews:
Hopefully by mid-2007 SP1 for Vista will come out with the sweet SQL-based file system (infinitely useful). Oh, and hopefully by that time MS has bought Maxthon and made it into IE 8...
Within a year or two from that point, Firefox would lose 90% of its userbase and shrink back to its "natural size" of hardcore MS haters - the rest of us will use whatever their "shiny new PC" comes with (IE7/8).
Then again they say "PROPHECY WAS GIVEN TO THE FOOLS".
--
Then I made this "foolish" mistake in another MS-related post:
...AOL currently has 70 million users with AIM+ICQ. MSN has about 30. I'd gamble that in 5 years MSN reaches 100 million active users (including Y!'s then-accessible users) and AOL drops to 50 million.
Just remember what integrating IE into Win98 did to Netscape...
--
Everything ties-in perfectly. Microsoft's ABSOLUTE reign is here to stay, my friends.
As for Google's "technology"? Same thing as Microsoft's - nothing new under the sun; only reason it gets props/overpublicity is due to the Google brandname. Everything Google does is basically another NOT so-complex script or SQL statement. MUCH MUCH less than $1mil in programmers' time.
They're big for the same reason MS is big - average folks are very easy to impress technologically. eBay, too, is nothing but a script and a mass of users. Nobody these days has any serious TECHNOLOGICAL advantage.
This is, why, again, my friends, MS will rule - because eBay integrated into the OS and Google integrated in the OS, ver 2 or 3 of such attempts - will be what all of us will use daily. Will not be "the best" of such services, but certainly good enough not to warrant venturing into murky "nonstandard" territories.
You experience it yourself now with Firefox. And though it's rare - it is very very annoying. There's NOTHING the open-source community can do to make future versions of Firefox SIGNIFICANTLY better than IE8 (say). Security concerns will be (practically) fully addressed by that time... Most that will happen if you "hack" the browser, is you'll get to see the user's "temporary internet files" folder. Big F' Deal.
Damn, I think I just convinced myself to invest $10K in MS stock right now! hehehehehe
Score: 0
|Agreed. If IE7 gets it right then I'll use it - simple as. If IE7 gets it wrong - I won't. [shrugs]
And I agree - at some point or other (sooner or later) Maxathon will get bought by MS - no doubt about it.
Score: 0
|If MS buys Maxthon then I will never use IE. I hate that browsers interface, it is horrible.
As for not using Firefox, I personally prefer a browser that isn't intergrated into the OS so much. Its just a browser for christ sake, Firefox has proved that you can have a top quality product without it needing to be buried so deep in the OS you can't see where it ends and the OS begins.
The only way I would use IE over Firefox now is if it did something that I *NEED* it to do and it isn't built into the OS so much.
Firefox does all I want and more, there is no reason for me to use IE anymore. RSS and tab support is not enough to make me switch back sorry and I am sure I am not alone in feeling this way.
Score: 0
|I agree, especially with some of the problems Firefox users are reporting lately such as CPU race conditions and memory consumption.
Score: 0
|I couldn't understand why you care if the browser is part of the OS or not. You always have the choice to install another browser if you don't like the built-in one. It's not a space issue or performance issue so it's something less practical and more religious. ;)
As for the interface - it's just something to get used to I guess (myself - love it!), or to hope for more dynamic customization and "presets" (such as "Firefox look-alike" preset). Seems feasible to me.
MS has enough cash to spend on the browser so for every 1-programming-hour spent on Firefox, they can spend (say) 50-programming-hours. Who do you think is gonna win on best-look best-functionality best-security best-everything in the LONG run?
Score: 0
|I doubt I'll be using IE7. Probably will stick with Maxthon based on IE7-engine. Too many features I've become addicted to (groups, drag-and-drop, save-on-quick-shutdown, mouse actions, intelligent "crap"-blocker, and of course plug-in system).
Score: 0
|Can't wait for IE7.
A completely new IE is long overdue!
Come on MS, i want to try it!
Score: 0
|I agree it's slightly overdue and it shows MS's true colors of not innovating unless pushed against the wall - but as they say in the Jewish Gemarah - Gam Zu Letova - "That, too, is for the better". ;-)
Too frequent updates lead to user confusion, inability to master usage, and lack of conformity. There are numerous advantages to the fact that most of the folks I know have Windows XP installed. Tech solutions, explanations, software installations, hardware possibilities etc. Likewise, it's very convenient for web designers to be able to predict the way their web site will appear on most of their visitor's screens (IE6 users). Too many version combinations lead to too much wasted time.
5 years is a good number for new generation of standards.
Score: 0
|They should just let the dinosaur die.....oh wait, it's already dead, silly me.
Score: 0
|lol!
I guess they're just trying to bring it back to life now...
Score: 0
|IE 7 is dead... they'll just buy Opera and spin it
Score: 0
|They're actually promoting Maxthon as of late.
Score: 0
|IE 7 is going to rule!
Score: 0
|The words IE and rule do not belong in the same sentence...
Score: 0
|"Firefox | Safari | Opera will rule IE."
Sure they do!
Score: 0
|IE7 has been delayed long enough, and it seems that it has nothing original. they have stolen everything from opera and firefox.
Score: 0
|They are features people want, because it has been done means they can't do it?
Score: 0
|very true I use firefox but opera is good also. IE 7 was just made in response to better browsers. Wow 5 years latter and this is it???
Score: 0
|You're right, but one thing you have to give them: the phishing filter.
No one else had that integrated first. I just hope it doesn't turn out to be a failure and actually helps people avoid phishing.
Score: 0
|gmail has one...but it's not a browser....yet.
*grin*
Score: 0
|