Microsoft urged to change deadline for end of Windows 10 support

Microsoft is facing a last-ditch campaign against its decision to end support for Windows 10 later this month. The software giant has already made concessions to European consumers by extending support for an additional year, and US customers are wondering why the same extension can’t be applied across the Atlantic. Businesses and consumers alike are hoping for a last-minute change of plan.

The campaign is being led by PIRG, a consumer group that is looking to persuade Microsoft to think again about its decision to withdraw support from Windows 10 on October 14.  Businesses around the world will be facing the prospect of no further security updates if they are still using the older operating system.

Microsoft had hoped that the majority of users would have adopted Windows 11 by now, however the latest research has revealed that slightly under half of all Windows users have switched to the new operating system. There has been a reluctance to move because Windows 11 requires a particular hardware configuration, and not all Windows 10 machines support it.

Nathan Proctor, a senior director with PIRG, said that it had been pressure from the group that led to Microsoft’s decision to grant the European concession, as well as being behind the decision, taken a couple of years ago, to allow education establishments to have additional support.

While European consumers have been given another year of grace, there is still some unhappiness within business. “We have customers asking us why they haven’t been given an extra year of support in the same way that European consumers have,” said Alex Pearce, chief strategist for Microsoft at reseller Softcat.

He also believes that, despite the favorable conditions, education establishments won’t necessarily have the best deal. “As Microsoft brings in more and more security features, Windows 10 users are going to be left behind.”  He said it was a particular concern, as there were plenty of indications that education organizations suffer a higher proportion of cyber attacks.

There are plenty of other worries for businesses. Proctor believes that most companies have already upgraded their desktop software, but he warned that it wasn’t just about PCs. “Look at medical equipment,” he said, “it could be that a hospital has MRI machines that are linked up to Windows 10 machines. If the decision is taken to upgrade all PCs to Windows 11, what’s going to happen to that [MRI] machine? Is it still going to work?”

He said that there were three reasons why PIRG was looking for an extension. “First of all, there’s the environmental waste in dumping computers, as well as the effect of mining for rare earth minerals to power new machines. Then there’s the cost to consumers to upgrade and, finally, there are going to be major security problems when these machines aren’t updated.”

Pearce is bracing himself for disruption after October 14 since, he said, “we know that there are certain features that aren’t going to work.”  He expects that the public sector will be particularly hit; “they haven’t got the money to complete all the upgrades,” he said.

Although it’s late in the day, Proctor is hopeful that Microsoft can be persuaded. “We have two more weeks to pile pressure on Microsoft. I’m hopeful that we can get some concessions,” he said.Microsoft urged to change deadline for end of Windows 10 support – ComputerworldRead More