java 7

How to manage the Java 6 and Java 7 runtimes in OS X

The transition from Apple's Java implementation to Oracle's with the release of Java 7 is a bit of a problem for many Mac users. While the Java runtime should have the necessary components to run most applications, the implementations differ enough, even in minor details, to make some programs simply throw up their hands and not run, claiming a valid Java installation needs to be run.

As part of its latest updates to Java, Apple has pushed for users to leave the Java SE 6 platform and adopt Oracle's Java 7 runtime. Usually with multiple Java runtimes … Read more

New vulnerabilities found in latest Java update

Only hours after Oracle released its latest Java 7 update to address active exploits, security researchers found yet another vulnerability that can be exploited to run arbitrary code on systems that have the runtime installed.

Oracle's latest release of its Java 7 runtime has come under scrutiny in the past few weeks after it was found being actively exploited in malware attacks that target Windows systems. While so far the vulnerability has only been found being used against Windows, other platforms such as the Mac OS could potentially be targeted through the same exploit.

In response to these findings, … Read more

Oracle patches Java 7 vulnerability

In response to the findings of a recent vulnerability in Java 7 that was being exploited by malware developers, Oracle has released an official patch that takes care of the problem.

In the past week, a new vulnerability was unveiled in Oracle's Java 7 runtime, which has been used by hackers in targeted attacks on Windows-based systems. Similar to the recent Flashback malware in OS X, this vulnerability allows criminals to create a drive-by hack where the only action needed to compromise a system is to visit a rogue Web page that hosts a malicious Java applet.

Even though … Read more

New Java 7 exploit can potentially affect Macs

A new vulnerability was found last week in the latest Java 7 runtime from Oracle. The vulnerability is currently being used by malware developers to exploit systems with runtime installed.

Similar to the Flashback malware seen affecting Mac systems with unpatched versions of Java installed, this latest threat uses a drive-by attack in which simply visiting a malicious Web page will result in the Java applet running and compromising the system.

When the exploit loads, systems may see a blank Web page with no activity, but may also see a brief Java icon with "Loading" text before this … Read more

Apple prepares upcoming Java updates for OS X

Apple is preparing updates to its Java 6 runtime for OS X 10.6 and 10.7, which will allow it to better co-exist with future versions of the Java runtime. These updates will soon be available for OS X 10.6 as "Java Update 9" and for OS X 10.7 as "Java Update 2012-004."

The Java SE 6 runtime that Apple provides for OS X 10.6 and 10.7 users will be the last in-house developed version of the Java runtime for OS X. For future versions starting with the upcoming Java 7 … Read more

How to install and uninstall Java 7 for OS X

The Java SE 6 runtime that has shipped with past versions of OS X and which has been available on-demand for Lion users is the last version that Apple will officially support in OS X, but this does not mean Java for OS X is dead. Java's parent company Oracle has taken up the reins for Java development in OS X, and yesterday announced the first version of the upcoming Java SE 7 runtime for OS X.

This update is good news for Java developers, and for end users who run Java code on Mac systems, as it is … Read more