After Google "hack", Microsoft Urges People To Upgrade Away From XP/IE6

Microsoft's relationship with IE6 and XP is complicated. On the one hand, the company refuses to drop support for IE6 and won't force users to upgrade away from it, and it still makes sure to offer businesses add-ons like Windows XP Mode as well as MED-V. On the other hand, the software giant runs mini campaigns and pushes for users to upgrade away from the ancient applications, usually citing security.

Still, this is the first time we've seen Microsoft actually recommend users upgrade because of a specific flaw, and not just away from IE6 but away from Windows XP completely. Microsoft doesn't say that newer versions of Internet Explorer and later Windows releases are invulnerable to the flaw, but it does explain that they have "reduced risk to the exploit" due to platform mitigations such as IE Protected Mode and Data Execution Prevention.