Microsoft Kicks Fake Security Software off 400,000 PCs

Microsoft Kicks Fake Security Software off 400,000 PCs

In the second month of a campaign against fake security software, Microsoft Corp. 

has booted the rogue application "Antivirus 2009" from almost 400,000 PCs, the company recently claimed.

December's version of the Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT), a free utility that Microsoft pushes to Windows users as part of Patch Tuesday, targeted one of the most popular phony security app, Antivirus 2009. According to Microsoft, the MSRT erased the fake from over 394,000 PCs in the first nine days after it released this month's edition on Dec. 9.

Last month, Microsoft trumpeted a similar cleaning operation against another family of bogus security software that it said had purged nearly a million machines of programs such as those called "Advanced Antivirus," 

"Ultimate Antivirus 2008" and "XPert Antivirus."

Microsoft facing bleak outlook for Vista sales

Microsoft's recent quarterly revenue report indicated troubling numbers for the Vista operating system that could continue into next year, according to Computer World. Although the company has shown strength in its business division, the client division, which is primarily driven by Vista, showed only two percent sales growth year over year. In contrast, the overall shipments of PCs increased by 10 to 12 percent. Microsoft claimed the soft sales of its core product was the result of unimpressive shipments of PCs to developing countries and the booming production of neetbooks.
Source: Mccn