If you have been contemplating the switch from XP to Windows 7, Microsoft has recently released a report which might help make up your mind. The Security Intelligence Report (which details the state of software vulnerabilities, exploits, security breaches and malware) has found that infection rates for newer Microsoft operating systems with the latest service packs are consistently lower than those for older OS's, giving Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 the best ranking for security.

Based on reported infections per 1000 computers; Microsoft ascertained that Windows 7 64-bit was the most secure OS of all with 2.5 infections per 1000 machines, while Windows 7 32-bit version came in at 3.8.

Windows XP with SP3 logged 15.9 infections per 1000, while XP with SP2 had the highest number at 19.3. Analyse the report's findings and you will see that Windows 7 comes out at around four to five times more secure than XP!!

Windows Vista's infection rate was considerably lower than that for XP but still around double that for Windows 7.

Apparently, the 64-bit versions of Windows 7 and Vista not as prone to infections as their 32-bit counterparts. That may be partially down to more savvy users, but Windows 64-bit also offers a feature called Kernel Patch Protection, which protects the Windows kernel from unauthorized changes and is not available in the 32-bit OS's.

This latest Microsoft Security Intelligence report can be downloaded in full [url=http://www.microsoft.com/security/sir/:e4tv1o78]HERE[/url:e4tv1o78].
[simply choose which format (XPS = 4.8MB or PDF = 3.5MB) and preferred language].

Not saying the report is anything but totally honest, but do you think MS may have [perhaps] compiled the statistics utilising a modicum of 'creativity' in order to encourage users to make the switch?.....must admit, the thought did cross my mind.