A variety of logos hover above the Microsoft booth on the opening day of the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Credit: Reuters/Rick Wilking
XP's infection rates in particular jumped dramatically in the first half of 2012, the report said.
According to CBS News, the rise in infection rate was due to the worm family Win32/Dorkbot and the trojan downloader Win32/Pluzoks, and the fact that Microsoft has stopped directly supporting Windows XP with security updates to address such risks, the report added.
One can protect his/her PC from malware by upgrading to Windows 7, or Windows 8, which releases in about a week, the report said.