Earlier quoted context omitted.
Writing the critical parts of a OS kernel in C is sensible. Browser extensions, not so much. As the author notes, they're not just being snobby about languages, the main issue with C from a security POV is the total lack of memory safety and the consequent vulnerability to buffer overflows.
> the main issue with C from a security POV is the total lack of memory safety and the consequent vulnerability to buffer overflows. Sure, but C++ also has these issues, so the "not even C++" doesn't exactly make sense.
Not really. With C++, you don’t have to use manual memory management. In the typical scenario, C++ objects take care of memory without the developer having to think about it. And you have all kinds of smart pointers for the more complicated scenarios.
That doesn’t mean of course that there are no buffer overflows in C++, or use-after-free bugs. There is still plenty of room for mistakes. But C++ code following best practices tends to have far fewer vulnerabilities than comparable C code.