Internet Explorer Vrs Windows Explorer

[MitchE323]

Why is it that if I have Internet Explorer "forced" through Sandboxie, I can still access the web via Windows Explorer?

If I click one of my favorites from the Start Menu area in XP, I am in the sandbox. But if I am in any folder such as My Documents and access Favorites from the upper toolbar and click that same favorite, I am not in the sandbox.

I don't normally get to the web that way, as most people probably don't either. But it occurs to me to be a very simple work-around and maybe there are other equally simple "behind the scenes" workarounds that a malicious web site might use.

Mitch

[tzuk]

I'm not sure I follow the reasoning here.

It seems to me that you're saying:

Because programs outside the sandbox (Windows Explorer) have access to the Internet, then this implies that programs will also be able to break out of the sandbox.



By the way, when you upgrade to IE 7, this 'workaround' disappears.

[street011]

mitch, the forced process works by processname.

when you open a site in the windows explorer the process is still explorer.exe, not iexplore, explorer just uses the internetexplorers engine.

[MitchE323]

Street011 is right, I thought that what was happening was that explorer.exe was opening Iexplore.exe and that sandboxie should be alerting me to that. But in checking the processes running in task manager I see that Iexplorer.exe is not listed.

What threw me off was the changing of the icons in the standard buttons toolbar. I thought that was also changing from explorer.exe to Iexplore.exe.

Ok, so I guess now my question becomes - Suppose I have something bad on my computer that is trying to phone home. Sandboxie will alert me if that bad app. uses Iexplore as access but otherwise it can get through via explorer.exe. Is there a way to protect against that?

LOL, Tzuk - If only.....If only... IE7 wasn't the ugliest thing I have ever seen in my entire life, I might consider installing it. Keep in mind I have seen many ugly things over the years, but........sorry, no thanks. LOL

Thanx
Mitch