Catholic Online Forum

A friend posted this on FB. http://www.zdnet.com/homeland-security- ... 000009713/

Summary: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is the latest body to warn users to disable Java software amid escalating concerns over a serious, exploitable vulnerability.

And it is not a hoax. This is the page for how to disable Java. Unfortunately, it means blah blah blah to me. http://docs.oracle.com/javase/7/docs/te ... ml#disable

So.... my computer tells me that Java update was last run in 2009. Does that mean it is disabled already on my computer?

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

What browser are you using?

For example, if you use firefox, there are easy to follow instructions here:

http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/How ... %20applets

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squirt
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Jamais le mal n’aura le dernier mot. La foi et l’amour déplacent les montagnes de la haine.
- Marguerite (Maggy) Barankitse

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In Christ,

Jim B

I will consider your position if stated with firm, well-thought-out, quiet reasoning. Hateful diatribe, ad hominem attacks and shouted rhetoric don't impress.

If I recall correctly full Java is a product that asks to be run every time a Java program attempts to run from the browser.

So you get a prompt that says "Do you wan to run this Java program?"

For now at least, the simple solution is just to say "no" until they put out a fix for this. Then update your Java.

And by the way, if your Java hasn't been updated since 2009, you've been vulnerable to dozens of vulnerabilities all this time.

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Jeff Stevens

Is JAVA even needed on the typical computer?

I constantly get invitations to update JAVA. Always have since buying the computer. Why? Why is JAVA on my computer in the first place?

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Norman
"Reporters want to find out what I plan to do. They say imagine the temptations that come with unlimited power! Who could resist changing things? I can resist temptation. I’m not going to tell anybody what to do. People know best what to do with their lives."

--Theresa

Grace,

Thanks for the reminder... I'd just heard this on the car radio early this morning and promptly forgot. Java isn't on my computer at all.

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Valerie Garcia
vals1990@yahoo.com

"Listen, O my son, to the precepts of thy master, and incline the ear of thy heart, and cheerfully receive and faithfully execute the admonitions of thy loving Father, that by the toil of obedience thou mayest return to Him ....." St. Benedict

Isn't this kind of old news? According to the article linked by Jim, Oracle (Java) issued a patch that fixed this back in August 2012.

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David L (CA)
"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.” - Groucho Marx

What I've read indicates the notice was issued on 12 January, 2013. There is a history of security issues with Java so there is also a history of notices. Up to now my Norton has handled them with no problem but I get the impression this alert is more serious so I took the precaution of disabling the software.

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BobA

Well, I searched "What does Java do?" and it seems that it is not a good idea to delete it. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index ... 738AAqndZk

Sounds like nothing will work.


So if I don't ever see these prompts, then my computer isn't using it?

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

January 10th. http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA13-010A.html

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

You can get along without Java. You can still use the internet. You can delete it through your control panel. You can always download it back from it's site after they fix the loophole. Better to be safe than cracked.

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Pax et Bonum


Schultzz

He's wrong. I almost never use Java.

The interface for Java looks VERY different from a regular web browser. When you're in a typical web browser interface, which is 99.999% of the time, you're not using Java. The rest of the time is usually Flash.


Pretty much.

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Jeff Stevens

I concur.



Java is a programming language and runtime environment that is standardized across every platform it runs on. It can run in nearly every browser, on Windows computers, on Apple computers, on Linux computers, on Android phones, and on other platforms I can't think of off the top of my head. Every platform runs the EXACT same source code and runs it pretty much the EXACT same way. Thus programmers can write a program once and not have to change it to run on each different platform. This is a major advantage.

It can do things that cannot be done in a regular browser, like graphics, action buttons, and direct access to the computer operating system, which is why it is used for these sorts of exploits.

As Schultzz said, better safe than sorry, and you can always reinstall it later. The vast vast vast majority of the time, you're not using it for anything. Remove it. If you run across something you're trying to do that explicitly says it requires Java, you can install it later.

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Jeff Stevens

Thanks for your input Jeff.

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Pax et Bonum


Schultzz

Okay, I'll do it now. If I don't come back, you'll know I completely messed up my internet.

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

Grace,
Just delete it through your control panel add/remove programs. It will give you a prompt. Try not to delete anything else.

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Pax et Bonum


Schultzz

I deleted update 8 and update 15 easily. But update 7 doesn't want to go.

I get a message saying, "Error 1719. The Windows Installer Service could not be accessed. This can occur if the Windows Installer is not correctly installed. Contact your support personnel for assistance."

What do you think I should do?

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

I eventually got to chrome plug-ins and Java is NOT on the list.
Does that mean everything is okay?
Although now I have the Java icon on the lower right side of my screen... so it is there.

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

I eventually got to chrome plug-ins and Java is NOT on the list.
Does that mean everything is okay?
Although now I have the Java icon on the lower right side of my screen... so it is there.

_________________
Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla

I deleted JAVA using control panel, programs, uninstall.

Haven't noticed any difference in my computer's performance.

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Norman
"Reporters want to find out what I plan to do. They say imagine the temptations that come with unlimited power! Who could resist changing things? I can resist temptation. I’m not going to tell anybody what to do. People know best what to do with their lives."

--Theresa

I cannot delete the one update...

I suspect that it was not activated on my computer until I started messing with it. Now there is an icon on the bottom of my screen asking me to update every time, and there hadn't been one before.

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Grace

As to the past, let us entrust it to God's mercy, the future to Divine Providence. Our task is to live holy the present moment. - Saint Gianna Molla