JAVA...safe or not?

[pappi]

I am not a developer(actually I have no clue what makes one a developer). I do not play hi-speed games. I am limited to solitaire.

I have been computing since 2000. I have owned several PC's through the years and they all came with factory installed JAVA, along with factory installed programs/bloaters

Recent warnings from Homeland Security concerning JAVA's security vulnerability had me concerned.

Am I risking malware attacks thru a program that I might not even need? Is JAVA really that much of a risk? Do I need JAVA?

 

[townsbg]

I can't speak as to the security of Java except what I have read however I can say that more than likely you don't need Java. For my own personal use I only need java if I want to upload files to my online backup provider. Most of my typical computer usage doesn't require it. For work there are some other sites that require it. I've come to decide that the biggest need for it is for developers and quite frequently on the server side. Keep in mind though that some sites do require java to be installed on the client which would be your system.

 

[Patonb]

No you are not. Java is used for a lot of basic websites that you may shop at, read news at or edeucate yourself at.

It is just a way for websites to display stuff like check boxes, drop down menus or other interactive sections on a page.

 

[pappi]

Almost daily I get malwares since I re-installed Java a week ago, latest release. Luckily, MSE removes them automatically.

Just now, I decided to un-install it again and see if I continue to get infected.

 

[townsbg]

Perhaps you should go with version 6. One thing to consider though is the websites that you go to. You might try installing web of trust. It will alert you if you try to visit sites that users have reported as untrusted by any of 4 different categories. It is available for firefox, chrome, IE, Safari, and Opera.Download the WOT add-on | WOT (Web of Trust)

 

[NoelDP]

No you are not. Java is used for a lot of basic websites that you may shop at, read news at or edeucate yourself at.

It is just a way for websites to display stuff like check boxes, drop down menus or other interactive sections on a page.

You mare making a common mistake here, and confusing Java (from Oracle, nowadays) with JavaScript - which is a totally different thing.

Java is a cross-platform application which effectively creates a virtual machine for Java applications to be able to run in Windows, Apple, or Android environments.

JavaScript is a programming language.

Java has security flaws - which are being exploited frequently (hence the current spate of poorly-managed updates).
JavaScript doesn't - at least to the same extent (I can't remember the last time I saw a 'security update for JavaScript')

In short - most people will use Java for no more than running online games (Pogo and such sites use Java extensively).
Some will use it for running OpenOffice - which depends on Java being installed, or OfficeLibre (which appears to be trying to divorce itself from the Java heritage). If you do neither of these, then you should consider uninstalling Java.


Everybody almost without exception will be using JavaScript every day they go online, since most websites use it extensively, and it is an integral part of all common browsers and cannot usually be uninstalled.

 

[Patonb]

Isn't JAVA what "plays" Java Script though?

 

[z3r010]

No, that's a different thing.

Unless you have something that you need Java installed for then it's a lot safer to uninstall it from your system.

 

[townsbg]

Isn't JAVA what "plays" Java Script though?

The 2 are quite different. Javascript is processed by the browser and therefore doesn't need java installed. Java is used much more heavily on the server side instead of the client side. Java vs. JavaScript, You don't need Java

 

[pappi]

In the list of my subscribed threads, this thread is listed with 5-star marking. What does it mean?