The types and characteristics of corrosion microorganisms in soil environment, the influence of main environmental factors on the development of sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) corrosion, the progress of microbial influenced corrosion (MIC) research methods, corrosion mechanism and corrosion protection and monitoring were described based on the worldwide research results. And the prospect of MIC of pipeline steel in soils was put forward. The service environment of buried pipeline steel is complex, which is affected by many factors, such as soil type, stray current, cathodic protection, stress, disbondment and microorganisms, and each factor has coupling effect on each other. In the future, the MIC of buried pipeline steel will still concentrate on the coupling effects of multiple factors. MIC in soil environment is an interdisciplinary subject involving soil science, material science, corrosion science and microbiology. The combination of chemical and electrochemical analysis technology, biotechnology and material characterization technology provides more research methods for the study of MIC action and mechanism in soil environment, and helps us to better understand microbial / material interaction. With the intensive study on MIC, researchers have a more comprehensive understanding on the corrosion mechanism of SRB. The theory of biocatalytic cathodic sulfate reduction further explains why and how microorganisms corrode steel in terms of bioenergy and bioelectrochemistry. The development of antibacterial coating and anti-MIC pipeline steel provides a new research path for MIC prevention and control.