Infosecurity notes that IE6 dates back to 2001 and was originally applauded for its enhanced security over version 5.0 of the then popular web browser client.
It now seems that IE6.0 is really reaching the end of the line, as Microsoft is reportedly encouraging its third-party developers to cease support for the browser.
Google, for example, has phased out support for IE 6.0 on its Google Docs service in March, recommending that users upgrade "as soon as possible."
Late last week, Microsoft Australia kicked off a marketing campaign aimed at IE6 users asking: "You wouldn't drink nine-year-old milk, so why use a nine-year-old browser?"
The Australian website created by Microsoft has a link for users to upgrade to IE 8.0, noting that the latest browser client is designed to cope with today's modern cybercrime.
Despite this, industry reports suggest that around 15% of Windows users worldwide are still using IE6.0, a situation that Infosecurity notes is not helped by the fact that most Windows XP installation disks bundle the browser version as standard.