From <SOURCE> a few days ago :
After discovering attack code on a brand new Windows XP netbook, antivirus vendor Kaspersky Labs warned users yesterday that they should scan virgin systems for malware before connecting them to the Internet.
When Kaspersky developers installed their recently-released Security for Ultra Portables on an M&A Companion Touch netbook purchased for testing, “they thought something strange was going on,” said Roel Schouwenberg, a senior antivirus researcher with the Moscow-based firm. Microsoft’s Windows XP is considered by many users as the ideal operating system for small form nearly bare bones portable computers known as netbooks.
Schouwenberg scanned the machine — a $499 netbook designed for the school market — and found three pieces of malware.
Here’s a look at some the market’s more expensive netbooks.
“This was done at the factory,” said Schouwenberg. “It was completely new, still in its packaging.”
With a little more digging, Schouwenberg found multiple Windows system restore points, typically an indication that the machine had been updated with new drivers or software had been installed before it left the factory.
So, Linux or Windows – Your Choose !!!