Microsoft warns Chinese users not to use XP for better security

Absrtact: Multinational software giant 6th released its latest Security Intelligence report, warning users who are still using Windows XP operating system for more than 12 years to upgrade to the latest operating system as soon as possible to achieve better security. Microsoft's report calls for

The International software Giant, 6th, released its latest Security Intelligence report, warning that users who are still using Windows XP operating systems that have been in service for more than 12 years need to upgrade to the latest operating system as soon as possible for better security.

In its report, Microsoft called for "Upgrade your operating system for your information security." However, market participants are more likely to interpret the "safe goodwill" of the multinational software giant as "forcing" more users to buy upgrades to their latest releases of the operating system.

Security data from more than 1 billion computer systems in more than 100 countries and regions of the world show that Windows XP users are at 6 times times the risk of hacking into the latest generation of operating systems, the report said.

Shenwey, vice president of Microsoft Greater China and general manager of marketing strategy, said that at present, users who are using XP systems worldwide face three security threats: the malicious software that steals personal information, lowers the level of computer security, infects Windows executables, Microsoft Viruses for Office files and HTML files and worms that can automatically download other malware.

Reports show that users of Windows with different intergenerational operating systems have a similar proportion of malicious attacks, typically around 15%, but XP has the highest percentage of infections after an attack.

Observers say the timing of the announcement is noteworthy, although it has been the practice of Microsoft for many years to issue security reports. It is less than half a year before Microsoft announced a stop to XP support, while Microsoft's latest Window8.1 system was officially released less than one months ago.

Microsoft has not denied that this "security warning" is intended to urge users to upgrade to the latest generation of operating systems. "We call on users to embrace a more secure and powerful modern operating system, and the results emphasize the importance of using the latest operating systems to protect against cybercrime." "Shenwey said.

Microsoft has previously announced that it will stop its technical support for XP on April 18, 2014, when there will be no more security updates from the bottom of Microsoft's operating system.

According to the Microsoft Security Report, the most common security threats detected in China include Worms, trojans, and malicious programs that prevent antivirus software from being protected.

However, this "old" operating system still has a very broad user base. According to the latest data from the Internet Traffic Monitoring agency StatCounter, Microsoft Windows XP accounts for 21% of the operating system being used globally, while in China the ratio is much higher and market share is still as high as 54%.

In China, a large number of institutions and corporate users "slow pace" in operating system upgrades. Market analysis agencies believe that most enterprises and institutional users based on the operating system to develop the exclusive internal OA management system, once the upgrade requires its internal management system synchronization upgrades, this is not only time-consuming, but also expensive.

Microsoft's choice to issue a security warning here also shows that it wants to give organizations and business users a certain amount of time to do system upgrades and migrations.

Not only that, some of China's third party software companies, including 360, claim to be able to provide security patches and security, and many who hesitate to upgrade their operating systems continue to "stick" to the familiar XP.

As for the "Stop Support" statement, Microsoft is apparently very careful not to give the user the impression that "it will be completely out of the way", and it may also give other software companies the opportunity to occupy the market. ' If users have needs, we will still give technical support, but this may require a higher cost for users, so users can choose whether to pay for support to continue to stick to XP or to upgrade the new system directly, ' says Shenwey.

With the advent of the mobile internet era, consumer demand for mobile terminals has become more and more high. The popularity of new hardware, including tablets and smartphones, is expected to lead to software upgrades caused by the hardware upgrade.

The International Analysis agency Forrester predicts that in 2014, users will be more willing to choose the latest operating system based on flexibility, mobility and compatibility, which will bring greater convenience and more fun to people's work and life.