Norton antivirus software update makes Internet Explorer unusable – update

Norton antivirus software prevents Internet Explorer users from starting the browser after an update. The issues occur with versions 10 and 11, but other browsers such as Chrome and Firefox would not be susceptible.

Many users have been reporting the issues on Norton’s forums since Friday night. An update to the Norton Security antivirus software seems to have caused Internet Explorer to crash on startup. The issues have been reported with versions 10 and 11 of the browser, on Windows 7 and Windows 8.x. Norton users also report the problems on GoT. There don’t seem to be any problems with other browsers.

The error messages indicate that IPSEng32.dll, a file associated with the antivirus software, is at fault. Other users report that a new version of the scrx86ie.dat file is causing the problems. Restoring an old version of this file would have made the browser usable again for some Internet Explorer users. Uninstalling Norton Security also makes Internet Explorer functional again. For users who have Norton Security without the Friday evening distributed update, the browser still functions, which makes it clear that the problems are with the antivirus software.

Developer Symantec does not appear to have responded to the issues yet. As a result, it is also unclear when an update will be released that should fix the browser crash.

Update 5:58 PM: an update is being rolled out to fix the issues.