Microsoft has released an emergency security update to fix the vulnerability in Internet Explorer that has seen the computers of at least two million users hacked .
Microsoft
microsoft release emergency security update fix vulnerability internet explorer see computer million user hack
<m> Microsoft </m> has released an emergency security update to fix the vulnerability in Internet Explorer that has seen the computers of at least two million users hacked .
Microsoft releases security update for Internet Explorer
<m> Microsoft </m> has released an emergency security update to fix the vulnerability in Internet Explorer that has seen the computers of at least two million users hacked .
The `` zero day '' flaw allows hackers to gain access to the computers of visitors to infected websites , jeopardising the security of passwords , bank details and other personal information .
It is believed that as many as 233,000 web pages have been affected .
Microsoft says its `` critical '' update will protect users .
Christopher Budd , of the software giant 's security centre , said the company `` encourages all Internet Explorer customers to test and deploy this update as soon as possible '' .
Mike Reavey , also from the security centre , said : `` Even with that , the release Emergency Response process is n't over .
There is additional support to customers and additional refinement of our product development efforts . ''
Microsoft has said that the flaw has been proven to exist only in version 7 of Internet Explorer , but that version 6 and the `` beta '' release of version 8 are also `` potentially vulnerable '' .
It has estimated that one in every 500 Windows users has been exposed to websites that attempt to exploit the flaw , and that the number of victims was increasing by 50 per cent every day .
Paul Ferguson , a researcher from the software security company Trend Micro , told the BBC that attacks were spreading `` like wildfire '' .
`` This vulnerability is being actively exploited by cyber-criminals and getting worse every day , '' Mr Ferguson said .