Hackers hoarding Windows XP exploits for cut-off bonanza

With just less than a month until support for Windows XP ends, the security community has warned that hackers are hoarding exploits to let loose on unsuspecting firms once support ends.

After 8 April Microsoft will not release any more updates for the platform. This means that for hackers any holes in the platform they exploit will not be patched, presenting a potential gold mine.

Mark Brown, director of information security at EY, told V3 that he believes the end of support for XP will open the floodgates for hackers to release all manner of attacks. “There could be a nightmare scenario where it becomes the Wild West, or it could be another Y2K situation where nothing actually happens,” he said.