What does it mean to update your Browser?

Published at: Feb 18, 2022

There's a lot of talk on this site about updating your browser and how important it is to do - but it's left a few people asking: What does it even mean to actually update your browser?

To "Update your browser" means to start using the newest version available of your web browser

Your web browser is a program on your computer or phone - in the same way that you have a Word Processor, Calculator, Music Player, and Video Player on your computer or phone - you also have a Web Browser.

To update your web browser means to download, install, and start using the latest available version of your web browser. Web browsers are very complex pieces of software, and the companies that make them are always fixing problems and adding new features to them. When they fix these problems and add new features, they share these changes by releasing a new version of the browser

So when you update your web browser, it means you get rid of the old version of your web browser and start using the new version of it.

...and what does that mean?

It means that you are safer on the internet - yes of course there are still lots of risks and pitfalls to watch out for on the internet - but you can at least rest assured that as long as you're running the latest version of your browser, you're hopefully a bit safer and protected against the latest bugs.