Microsoft releases emergency security patch for IE

Internet Explorer (IE) Web browser on Thursday, Microsoft Corp. said on its security Web site that the patch will fix eight holes in IE, including the “remote code execution” flaw that apparently was the weak link in the recent China hacking episodes.

Noting that the security hole had possibly been exploited by the hackers to initiate “limited and targeted” cyberattacks on Google and 20 other companies in China, Microsoft elaborated that the vulnerability enabled the hackers to remotely take over a PC after a user’s visit to a malicious code-laden site.

Adding that the newly-released security patch is “critical,” Microsoft has advised the users, especially those using IE 6, to apply it at the earliest, so as to ensure the security of their PC against the “known” remotely-executed hacker attacks.