Microsoft maximises Edge security

Stefan Mileschin · 9th August 2021, 07:48

Super Duper Secure Mode

Microsoft said this week it plans to run an experiment in its Edge web browser where it will intentionally disable an important performance and optimization feature to enable more advanced security upgrades in what the company is calling Edge Super Duper Secure Mode.

Johnathan Norman, Microsoft Edge Vulnerability Research Lead, said the idea behind the new Super Duper Secure Mode is to disable support for JIT (Just-In-Time) inside V8, the Edge browser's JavaScript engine. JIT, while unknown to most end-users, plays a crucial role in all of today's web browsers. JIT works by taking JavaScript and compiling it to machine code ahead of time. If the browser needs the code, it gains a significant speed boost. If it doesn't, the code is discarded.

JIT support in V8 is is a pain apparently and JIT-related security issues amounted to 45 percent of all V8 vulnerabilities in 2019.

More than half of the "in the wild" Chrome exploits rely on JIT-related bugs. Norman said that recent tests carried out by the Edge team have shown that despite its pivotal role in speeding up browsers in the early and mid-2010s, JIT is not a crucial feature anymore to Edge's performance.

https://fudzilla.com/news/53340-micr...-edge-security

9th August 2021, 07:48	#1
Stefan Mileschin [M] Reviewer Join Date: May 2010 Location: Romania Posts: 153,575	Microsoft maximises Edge security Super Duper Secure Mode Microsoft said this week it plans to run an experiment in its Edge web browser where it will intentionally disable an important performance and optimization feature to enable more advanced security upgrades in what the company is calling Edge Super Duper Secure Mode. Johnathan Norman, Microsoft Edge Vulnerability Research Lead, said the idea behind the new Super Duper Secure Mode is to disable support for JIT (Just-In-Time) inside V8, the Edge browser's JavaScript engine. JIT, while unknown to most end-users, plays a crucial role in all of today's web browsers. JIT works by taking JavaScript and compiling it to machine code ahead of time. If the browser needs the code, it gains a significant speed boost. If it doesn't, the code is discarded. JIT support in V8 is is a pain apparently and JIT-related security issues amounted to 45 percent of all V8 vulnerabilities in 2019. More than half of the "in the wild" Chrome exploits rely on JIT-related bugs. Norman said that recent tests carried out by the Edge team have shown that despite its pivotal role in speeding up browsers in the early and mid-2010s, JIT is not a crucial feature anymore to Edge's performance. https://fudzilla.com/news/53340-micr...-edge-security

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