Yahoo! has told users of its email service they’ll need to update to the most recent version of their chosen browser or face being switched to a basic email version without spell check, themes or chat.
From 5 June, Yahoo! Mail is updating its web browser policy to support the most recent versions of Firefox, Chrome, Safari and Internet Explorer.
“For those users who cannot or do not wish to update their browser, we will automatically switch them from our full-featured version of Yahoo! Mail to our Basic Mail experience,” explained Jeff Bonforte, senior vice-president, Communications Products, Yahoo!
He said users not running a supported browser will see a new notification with instructions on how to upgrade their browser.
The largest group of users to be affected by the update will be those running Internet Explorer 8, a browser that is now five years old.
“We understand that this policy update may be frustrating for some affected users,” Bonforte said.
“We appreciate their help in upgrading their browser and hope that the subsequent improvements in security, speed and functionality, not just in Yahoo! Mail but across their entire web experience, will be welcomed.
“And we are happy that going forward these current-version browsers include ‘auto-updating,’ so users get the safest and most current browser without the hassle of manually upgrading,” Bonforte added.
Yahoo! image via Shutterstock
