A new version of the Firefox Web browser has been shipped by the Mozilla Foundation today that fixes a serious security hole that could put users at risk of computer takeover. Version 1.0.2 of Firefox corrects a problem which was discovered and reported by Internet Security Systems Inc., which can apparently cause a buffer overflow because of the way GIF files are processed by Firefox. Although Mozilla have been quick to point out that there are no known exploits using this bug, they are committed to quickly dealing with such issues and have released a fix.
Chris Hoffman, director of engineering at Mozilla argued that the open-source nature of the software gives it a leg up in the area of security. "One of best parts of open-source software is that the code is available for anyone to review. Mozilla's open-source software is inherently safer and more secure than traditional commercial code because it is scoured by thousands of contributors, developers and professionals, not just the company's development team," he said.