The somewhat atypical move by German and French authorities, whereby they are warning Web users against the use of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) and suggesting the use of other browsers, has been confronted by Microsoft.

Though Microsoft has acknowledged that an IE flaw was the ‘weak link’ in recent attacks on Google’s systems, the software maker is in complete disagreement with the European officials over the “strongly worded advice” they have extended to Internet users about the discontinuation of the use of IE, and search for alternatives.

Noting that the malicious code created to exploit the IE flaw has affected only the IE 6 version, Microsoft has recommended that the users of the older version should either adjust their browser’s security settings to “high,” or upgrade to the most recent IE 8 version of its browser.

In a statement, Microsoft has also specified that “all software has vulnerabilities,” and that the recommendations about switching browsers for protection against hacking attacks can “inadvertently create some false sense of security.”

Saying that the attacks on Google were by “highly motivated people with a very specific agenda,” Thomas Baumgaertner, a Microsoft spokesman in Germany, clarified that the attacks were not against “general” users.

Furthermore, a Microsoft spokeswoman revealed that the company is “in constant communication with government organizations,” including the German and French agencies, so as to ensure that they have “current and up-to-date information.”