Oracle JDK 7u10 released with new security features
- by Henrik Stahl
A few days ago, we released JRE and JDK 7 update 10. This release adds support for the following new platforms:
Windows 8 on x86-64. Note that Modern UI (aka Metro) mode is not supported.
Internet Explorer 10 on Windows 8.
Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion)
This release also introduces new features that provide enhanced security for Java applet and webstart applications, specifically:
The Java runtime tracks if it is updated to the latest security baseline. If you try to execute an unsigned applet with an outdated version of Java, a warning dialog will prompt you to update before running the applet.
The Java runtime includes a hardcoded best before date. It is assumed that a new version will be released before this date. If the client has not been able to check for an update prior to this date, the Java runtime will assume that it is insecure and start warning the user prior to executing any applets.
The Java control panel now includes an option to set the desired security level on a low-medium-high-very high scale, as well as an option to disable Java applets and webstart entirely. This level controls things such as if the Java runtime is allowed to execute unsigned code, and if so what type of warning will be displayed to the user.
More details on the security settings can be found in the documentation. See below for a sample screenshot.
The new update of the JRE and the JDK are available via OTN. To learn more about the release please visit the release notes.
