A decade ago, Microsoft launched the SDL, or Security Development Lifecycle, a now widely used process designed to build security features into software and began to build an unparalleled reputation for how the software vendor designs more secure code, informs its customers about security issues, and provides support in the form of security updates.
But Redmond, which just celebrated SDL's 10-year history with a flashy and funny online presentation, seems willing to risk that reputation by "pulling the plug" on Windows XP.
Microsoft plans to release the final patches for Windows XP on April 8. After that, it will not distribute code fixes for security issues found in the 13-year-old operating system. The result, as Microsoft itself has stated, could be disastrous. Last October, the company announced that after April 8, Windows XP would face a future where computers would be infected at a rate 66% higher than before it stopped updating.
