Security Industry Squeezes Windows XP for More Bad News

Looking for another security problem to worry about? Don't worry, the IT security industry will find another one to add to your list.

And so it is with the announcement that Windows XP enters extended support until April 2014. With Microsoft essentially down shifting XP support to make way for Windows 7 et al those of us that happily use that operating system are now faced with the added worry that hackers will target our operating system whilst Microsoft take their eye off the support ball, according to a press release from a security vendor.

Apparently we are going to be at increased risk even though our friends at Redmond are committed to releasing hot fixes and patches. Life in a small business is tough, especially when facing financial issues and having limited resources for IT security so is there *really* a heightened need for us to be getting even more concerned?

What all businesses need to worry about is good corporate security hygiene, with decent policies, training, patch management and anti-malware. But trying to squeeze a few extra sales on the basis of changes to ongoing Windows XP support does little to help the IT security industry's case, especially from well respected security vendors.