NOTE: This is issue #016 of my newsletter, which went live on Monday, February 8th. If you find this information useful and interesting and you want to receive future issues as they are published, ahead of everyone else, I invite you to join the subscriber list at frontendnexus.com.
Are you using Google Chrome? You should update it immediately to patch an existing zero-day vulnerability that is already being exploited out in the wild. You should do it right now, before anything else. Go on! I'll wait.
Done? Then feel free to relax and read the rest of the news.
You should update your Chrome browser immediately
Google Chrome is currently the most used browser in the world. And that makes it a very attractive target for all sorts of attacks. One such attack is happening now, and it prompted Google to issue an emergency patch.
The details of the exploit are kept hidden, for now, to give users more time to update. You should do that anyway, no matter what browser you are using.
- The Hacker News: New Chrome Browser 0-day Under Active Attack—Update Immediately!
- Sophos: Chrome zero-day browser bug found – patch now!
- Malwarebytes: Update now! Chrome patches zero-day that was exploited in the wild
- Forbes: Google Chrome Update Gets Serious: Hackers Already Have Attack Code
Adobe Flash - the end of an era
With Firefox 85 out, all the major browsers have dropped the support for Adobe Flash. So I gathered some points of view on what this means for the industry, the developers, and the users. Enjoy!
- How-To Geek: Adobe Flash is Dead: Here’s What That Means
- How-To Geek: How to Use Adobe Flash in 2021 and Beyond
- ArsTechnica: Flash is dead—but South Africa didn’t get the memo
- ArsTechnica: Deactivation of Flash may have crippled Chinese railroad for a day
- CSS-Tricks: The End of Adobe Flash
- Tiffany Brown: Flash Is Dead
What WebRTC means for you
I mentioned last week that WebRTC is now a standard adopted by W3C and IETF. This week I'm presenting you a new article on the Mozilla blog. It gives a good explanation of what this technology is and how it differs from other solutions.
Browser news
Edge
Microsoft Edge can now run natively on M1 Mac devices. That's right! You can now use the default browser that ships with your OS to download a new one from Microsoft. Oh, the irony!
WebKit
Speaking of Macs, Safari Technology Preview 119 is out as well. The list of changes is quite large, and you can check it in the official release notes.
Software updates and Releases
- cypress v6.4.0 - fast, easy, and reliable testing for anything that runs in a browser
- homebrew 3.0.0 - the missing package manager for macOS (or Linux)
- Node v15.8.0
- vuex v4.0.0 - centralized State Management for Vue.js
- V8 release v8.9 - open source high-performance JavaScript and WebAssembly engine
- VSCode January 2021 (version 1.53) - free source-code editor
Wrapping things up
That's all I have prepared for this issue. Have a great and productive week, keep yourselves safe, and I will see you next time!
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