Important memo for security-aware users running XP on their Mac

Jan 3, 2013 11:51 GMT  ·  By

Mac security company Intego has released an advisory according to which Mac users running Windows XP on their Macs are at risk as Microsoft is preparing to lift its hand off the aging desktop OS from a security standpoint.

Come April 2014, Microsoft will cease all security updates for Windows XP, “which will leave Windows XP systems much more vulnerable to exploitation and infection in the relatively near future,” says Intego.

Of course, with 2013 just kicking in, Mac owners running XP on their Apple computers have plenty of time to decide on their next course of action.

But Intego also wants to give Mac users a heads-up on an advantageous offer regarding the new Windows 8.

“Until January 31, 2013, Microsoft is offering a deal allowing you to upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for US $39.99,” the security firm reveals.

Any system running Windows XP Service Pack 3 all the way through Windows 8 Release Preview applies for the offer, including those systems with virtual machine installations.

Intego appropriately points out that there are some drawbacks associated with the process of upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 8, such as the fact that users will have to re-format their drive to support the NTFS file system.

“And then of course there are some major interface changes in Windows 8 that can be difficult to get used to,” the company adds.

And then comes the security side, which allows Intego to finally get to the point.

“From a security standpoint, Windows 8 Pro certainly has advantages over Windows Vista and especially Windows XP SP3, so if you’re concerned about security (and you probably are, since you’re reading the Mac Security Blog), now’s the time to upgrade to Microsoft’s latest OS while the price is not much higher than an OS X upgrade,” it states.

Interested parties will be able to upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $39.99 / €30 before January 31, 2013 at http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/buy.

Intego adds that users looking to get additional protection for their Windows installation should check out the company’s software bundles.