Firefox Browser Secured by Dell?

Safer surfing through virtualization? That’s the thinking behind a new offering by Dell’s Kace systems management division, which today unveiled a free, secure browser based on wrapping Mozilla’s Firefox in a virtualization shell.

The Dell Kace Secure Browser works by using virtualization to isolate the browser from the underlying operating system in an attempt to limit the risk of malware from infecting a user’s PC.

With the announcement, Dell joins a growing array of vendors offering a secure browsing experience by similarly locking it down through virtualization. The list includes HP, which likewise borrowed Mozilla technology and VMware, which has long since offered a “browser appliance” also built on the open source Web browser. There’s also Checkpoint with its browser-independent ZoneAlarm ForceField.

While these big-name firms have all tried some form of virtualization layer to protect users from malicious attacks, a key difference with the new Dell Kace Secure Browser is the fact that it can also be integrated with Dell Kace’s K1000 management appliance, providing enterprises with the ability to control Firefox instances to ensure that they remain in a safe state.

“In addition to containing the browser as a virtual application, we’ve also extended it to allow for Web filtering and the ability to limit what processes can or can’t be started by the browser,” Bob Kelly, senior product manager at Dell Kace, told InternetNews.com. “If you have a K1000, then the secure browser can be centrally deployed and administered from our Web-based console.”

Read the rest at eSecurityplanet.