Academic urges China not to use Microsoft's Windows 8

An academician has urged the Chinese government and industry leaders not to adopt Microsoft's Windows 8 system, citing the security threat as a reason.

Ni Guangnan, a computer scientist from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, told website people.com.cn in an interview last week that Windows 8 should not be used by government or important industries in China.

China refused purchases of Windows Vista in 2006 after a government assessment confirmed that the Vista's framework left computers open to manipulation by Microsoft.

"Windows 8, based on a similar framework, has security threats far greater than Windows Vista," said Ni.

Ni also urged the Chinese government to take immediate measures to tackle the potential security loopholes in Windows XP as Microsoft announced that support for the system will end on April 8.