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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Microsoft Posts Repair Kit For Web Browser Flaws

Associated Press

Microsoft has posted a single patch, or program repair kit, to fix all three security bugs found over the past week in its Internet Explorer Web browser.

Without the patch, an unscrupulous Web site operator could take advantage of the flaws to wreak havoc in someone else’s computer, sending instructions to run programs secretly, send electronic mail under the other operator’s name, or damage software stored on a hard drive.

The patch was posted late Saturday at the Microsoft Corp. official Web site and can be downloaded for free. The flaw affects Internet Explorer versions 3.0 and 3.01 for the Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 operating systems.

Internet Explorer claims about 25 percent to 30 percent of the market for programs to browse the World Wide Web on the Internet.

The first flaw was found more than a week ago by a student at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Mass. Another one was discovered Thursday by a student at the University of Maryland in College Park, Md.

The third problem was reported Friday by students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Microsoft’s World Wide Web site with information on the security flaws is: http://www.microsoft.com/ie/security/update.htm.