Microsoft cyber security chief urges users to avoid using Internet Explorer

Microsoft wants users to stop surfing the web on Internet Explorer.

In a blog post, the tech giant's cybersecurity expert Chris Jackson pleaded with users to stop using the legacy web browser, which Microsoft officially discontinued in 2015.

Instead, Jackson is advising that users move to a more 'modern browser' that is up to date with current web standards.

He laid out the reasons why users should switch in a blog post titled the 'perils of using Internet Explorer as your default browser.'

Many users have moved to browsers like Google Chrome, Firefox or Microsoft's latest browser, Edge.

But some businesses still rely on Internet Explorer to route their web traffic, which is something Jackson discourages in the post.

Jackson doesn't even refer to Internet Explorer as a browser in the blog post.

'You see, Internet Explorer is a compatibility solution,' Jackson explained.

'We're not supporting new web standards for it and, while many sites work fine, developers by and large just aren't testing for Internet Explorer these days. They're testing on modern browsers.

'...As new apps are coming out with greater frequency, what we want to help you do is avoid having to miss out on a progressively larger portion of the web,' he added.

Jackson also pointed out that when companies continue to use Internet Explorer, they end up taking on 'technical debt,' or paying extra to get support for old software, which can rack up additional costs over time.

He added that it's generally OK for people to use Internet Explorer in an enterprise environment, but they would better protect themselves if they switch to a newer browser.

Internet Explorer, which was first called Windows Internet Explorer, was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 in 1995.

Internet Explorer was one of the most widely used web browsers, attaining a peak of about 95 per cent during 2002 and 2003.

However, it struggled in the face of competition, and in May 2012 it was announced that Google's Chrome overtook Internet Explorer as the most used browser worldwide.

Microsoft later confirmed that it is dropping the Internet Explorer brand for Edge when it launched Windows 10.