Earlier this month the Department of Homeland Security released a security warning regarding the computer program Java, which is widely used for viewing images or video content as well as playing online games. The warning from the Department of Homeland Security was quite shocking to many people for different reasons. For those of us who are only familiar with the Department of Homeland Security through the media and the subject of terrorism, it was surprising.  I thought to myself, has terrorism advanced to the point where we can be attacked through our laptops? A quick Google search revealed that the Department of Homeland Security has a division for computer emergencies, US – CERT. US- CERT released the initial warning on Jan. 10 and while Java’s parent company Oracle was slow to comment on the issue, they released Java 7.11 on Jan. 14  to patch the security problem.

For computer security experts, the shock of homeland security’s warning about Java was not the possible security risk; rather, it was why highlight this one? Java has a history of vulnerabilities that, according to ComputerWorld blogger Michael Horowitz were equally as risky as the one found in Java 7.10. For whatever reason, the Java 7.10 risk quickly became widespread news on the Internet. CBS News and the New York Times even released online articles regarding the situation.

The US- CERT alert (TA13-010A) states, “A vulnerability in the Java Security Manager allows a Java applet to grant itself permission to execute arbitrary code. An attacker could use social engineering techniques to entice a user to visit a link to a website hosting a malicious Java applet. An attacker could also compromise a legitimate web site and upload a malicious Java applet (a “drive-by download” attack).” All versions of Java 7 through update 10 are vulnerable to this attack and even after Update 11 had been released, US-Cert and various computer safety experts recommend uninstalling Java altogether.

I am not exactly a computer savvy person, but after numerous bouts with viruses and malware, I have learned to be more cautious when it comes to the safety of my laptop (and pocketbook). Twitter and Instagram are the only social networking sites I use, and they are primarily accessed through my cellphone. I switched from the default Internet Explorer browser on my PC to Mozilla Firefox. I use Adblocker Plus, Noscript and Advast in hopes of keeping my computer free of internet cooties. After 3 years of such vigilance, I have only had one (known) computer virus. After reading the US – CERT Alert, I immediately uninstalled Java from my laptop, but after two days without being able to watch videos on YouTube, I gave in and reinstalled Java.

This situation with Java is just another reminder that technology, especially our computers, have its downsides. We can use the most expensive or elaborate security methods to protect ourselves but ultimately there is no 100 percent guarantee of protection against security risks when we choose to navigate throughout the online world. It is important to stay abreast of your computer’s health and any current issues that may affect you, but it is just as important to enjoy the benefits of your computer. I’m going to keep tweeting away, watching YouTube videos when I should be studying and laughing at the funny things I come across on the web … all while being cautious of course.