End of an era for viruses?

This article on the InfoSec show in London this week could be considered inflammatory. Claims of the end of viruses as a major threat are premature. About the time Outlook stopped executing VB scripts by default is when email born viruses started to pose a diminshed threat. Yet social engineering(marketing) as practiced by virus writers, spammers, and scammers is still an effective way to get people to open and execute attachements. If Outlook ever develops a vulnerability that allows arbitrary execution of code look for a major virus outbreak. I tend to agree with Larry Bidwell's statement at the end of the article:

ICSA Labs' Bridwell believes there will always be those at the cruder end of the cybercrime spectrum who try to keep 'the art' alive.

"As long as young boys are spraying graffiti on the Tube there will also be people trying to send email viruses," he said.

If virus defense is less of a concern today it is thanks to Microsoft (did I really just say that?) and the AV vendors for turning the threat into a known annoyance with a reliable cure.