The computer giant says people continuing to use the software will receive an emergency update to fix a bug in its Internet Explorer browser.
Microsoft Corp. rushed to create the fix after learning of the bug in the operating system when cybersecurity firm FireEye Inc. warned that a sophisticated group of hackers had exploited the bug to launch attacks in a campaign dubbed ‘Operation Clandestine Fox’.
It was the first high-profile threat to emerge after Microsoft stopped providing support to its 13-year-old XP operating software on April 8th.
Microsoft was under pressure to move quickly as the US, UK and German governments advised computer users to consider using alternatives to Microsoft’s Explorer browser until it released a fix.
Microsoft first had warned that it was planning to end support for Windows XP in 2007, but security firms estimated that 15 to 25 percent of the world’s personal computers still run on the version of the operating system that was released in October 2001.
Material prepared with aid of information agencies
