Windows 10 Still Being Used, Often Unpatched and Insecure (theregister.com)
- Reference: 0184505252
- News link: https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/07/18/2130259/windows-10-still-being-used-often-unpatched-and-insecure
- Source link: https://www.theregister.com/os-platforms/2026/07/16/windows-10-refuses-to-die-and-the-security-bill-is-coming-due/5271987
> A year ago, the operating system accounted for about half of the machines in its dataset, falling to the low-to-mid 40% range by the time Microsoft [3]ended standard support . The decline continued after that, reaching 18.6% in June, but Lansweeper says migration has now slowed to a crawl... Small and medium-sized businesses are particularly exposed. Lansweeper reckons that 21.4% of machines at small and medium-sized business still run Windows 10, with cost usually being the constraint that keeps the legacy operating system running. The exposure is greater in some sectors, with 23% of healthcare and pharmaceutical systems sticking with Windows 10, while consumer and retail devices hover at 22.7%.
>
> According to Lansweeper's data, "a Windows 10 device carries an average of 1,903 active CVEs against 652 on Windows 11. That's a 2.9x gap." Esben Dochy, principal technical evangelist at the company, told The Register that "the Windows 10 average also includes devices that have Extended Security Update patches applied." [According to Lansweeper's figures, 14% of Windows 10 assets have applied Extended Security Update patches.] Part of the problem, according to Lansweeper, is "patch diffing," in which Windows 11 fixes can be reverse-engineered to find flaws in Windows 10. "The supported OS effectively hands attackers a map into the unsupported one," Lansweeper said...
>
> Looking at other market share measures such as Statcounter, there was little change in the share of Windows 10 and its successor over the last few months after a surge following the end of support. As Lansweeper noted: "The easy migrations are done. What's left is the hard core: devices that haven't moved because they can't or won't."
Lansweeper's evangelist noted that in some cases there is no Windows 11-certified version yet for many medical devices and industrial or retail systems.
[1] https://www.lansweeper.com/blog/insights/windows-10-holdouts-carry-three-times-the-risk-of-windows-11/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/os-platforms/2026/07/16/windows-10-refuses-to-die-and-the-security-bill-is-coming-due/5271987
[3] https://www.theregister.com/off-prem/2025/10/09/millions-of-business-pcs-still-on-windows-10-as-d-day-nears/803998
Still a user (Score:3)
I get security updates, though. Windows 11 sucks and it's nice to turn on my computer and it still works the same as it did yesterday.
Re: (Score:2)
Windows 12? As the numbers get higher so does the enshitification. Why not wait until Windows 13 comes out, you know, the JSON edition.
Re: (Score:2)
It's going to be a Windows skin over linux at that point.
Re: (Score:2)
The way that I got Windows 11 to the benchmark of "still works the same as it did yesterday" was to virtualize it, feed hardware into it via IOMMU that it needs real hardware access for (GPU, sound, segregated PCIe SSD) to still get top performance, and then snapshot that root drive . Keep anything that requires fast disk access on the PCIe SSD, including the swap file.
When they fuck things up, I revert the snapshot. Fuck you, Microsoft.
Re: (Score:2)
Every IT-controlled Windows system I've seen in 10 years uses automatic updates because that's the default behavior of Windows - it's just a matter of if they are pointing it to a controlled update proxy, or pulling the default firehose direct from Microsoft.
And it's fucking horrible. No, I don't want to reboot in the middle of a presentation I'm leading to install a new mandated version of some shit I don't even ever launch.
Most IT departments have no idea how to set up automatic updating properly so that
Re: Most users are oblivious to updating. (Score:2)
The IT guys should only go to work after the employees went home so they can do both hardware & software maintenance without getting in each otherâ(TM)s way, regular office hours are 9 to 5, so IT should be 6 to 2 or 6 to whenever the job is done
Raw doggin (Score:2)
It's the only way baby!
No reason to upgrade. (Score:4, Insightful)
Win 11 has hardware requirements that aren't worth meeting for most users, even gamers. Add in the fact that win 11 has an inferior user experience, and its no wonder people aren't upgrading.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm still running Windows 10, but not the consumer version. I'm running Windows 10 IoT LTSC. It's similar to the consumer version, but doesn't have a lot of the crap, and it's supported by Microsoft through 2032.
Re: (Score:2)
No Microsoft store and no AI bullshit either.
Still used because 10 is current, right? (Score:3)
"Windows 10 is the last version of Windows" - Microsoft development evangelist in 2015
Re: (Score:2)
No, he was an employee - [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org].
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_10#:~:text=At%20the%202015%20Ignite%20conference,released%20over%20an%20indefinite%20period
Re: That's not not what he meant. (Score:2)
You missed the point of their rant. It's nothing to do with MS or any of that. It's that they like to be triggered so they can respond and prove to themselves they are better than someone else. I mean why mention MAGA?
Re: Still used because 10 is current, right? (Score:2)
Well, Windows 11 is just a marketing name. It's the same codebase and same version numbers. The difference was almost entirely to get OEMs to ship with working TPMs instead of only shipping them in "for business" lines. Before W11, you could get a good GPU or a TPM, not both.
Re: (Score:1)
And what was the benefit of the TPM requirement? Microsoft can now get Netflix to provide 4k video on Windows without fear that users might screenshot the movie. Yeah ... fuck you Microsoft, fuck you Netflix. No need to get a new CPU just so you can restrict me better. I rather pass your 4k video than get a system that cannot be modified.
Re: (Score:2)
> "Windows 10 is the last version of Windows" - Microsoft development evangelist in 2015
And he didn't lie. Windows 11 is a marketing name only. If you run an API call to GetVersion under Windows 11 you will get 10.0 as the result. Microsoft does not formally recognise Windows 11 as a separate OS version.
[1]https://learn.microsoft.com/en... [microsoft.com]
[1] https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/sysinfo/operating-system-version
Because it's better (Score:2)
Even now after its insecure it just loads programs, its search bar works, its start menu just opens when clicked, it hasn't been pumped with AI shite, it predates the vibe coding going on currently at microslop. Why would I want to go to 11?
Re: Because it's better (Score:2)
Right. Microsoft not fucking up Windows 10 is a feature, not a bug
Re: (Score:2)
whatever the reason, w11 is a clusterfuck of a much much much higher magnitude than w10
NT (Score:2)
I'd still be using NT if I could. Every iteration is worse. Well, not quite. Vista was particularly bad. But the trend is very much a grinding enshitification.
Re: NT (Score:1)
NT was fucking garbage. It was unstable and security bugs abounded. Later versions were profoundly better. I remember getting new servers on Windows 2000 and it saved me from an incredible amount of firefighting.
Linux, and Proton! (Score:2)
Just make the switch already, there are plenty of rock solid Linux distros with LTS and with Proton you can run the vast majority of windos software including most games.
Nobody needs windos or micro$oft anymore.
Re: (Score:2)
Home users aren't going to move the needle. Corporate users need to switch and it's not going to be to Linux when the vast majority of business software is made for Windows.
The long answer (Score:2)
> ... medical devices and industrial or retail systems.
Microsoft wants more spyware so many businesses can't upgrade to Windows 11, for legal or trade secret reasons. The better question is: What happens in 2032 when Win 10 becomes totally unsupported? Maybe, there will be a decent competitor to Windows 11 (Eg. Proton), or hopefully, businesses have finished a slow migration to pure Linux.
Another reason is, businesses have to choose between old drivers and Windows 11. A small business can probably afford to replace a few devices but a large corporation ca
Movie theatre projectors (Score:1)
I own and operate a movie theatre.
The projector runs on Windows XP.
The control computer that sets up the playlists and tells the projector to start and so on, runs on Windows 10.
The cinema server (the gadget that feeds the movie to the projector) runs on Linux, as does the catch server (the gadget that the movies get downloaded onto from the movie studio/distributor).
Re: (Score:2)
I don't know why anyone would make an embedded hardware product run on Windows. You are asking for extended support nightmares.
Everyone should have learned this long before Windows XP.
Re: Movie theatre projectors (Score:2)
Meh... Saw the garbage company use an Ms dos program to enter the trucks that arrived. Fun part? The employees lived it. Just follow the steps the program prints on the terminal. They had a newer system got some equipment. It had a GUI. They hated that because they did not know where to click first. There is more to software development than security.
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If they didn't know where to click first, then whoever was responsible for the UI did a bad job. Once the program's open, it should be clearly labeled where you click to get started, and how to go from one step to the next as you go. There are thousands of websites out there that do this so that a novice user can get everything entered in the right order without any guesswork, so whoever botched that job had no excuse for their failure.
Re: Movie theatre projectors (Score:2)
That was not the issue dear programmer. The user was the issue... User was there to stay.
Valve should make a billion dollar deal (Score:2)
With anti cheat companies and then expand proton to desktop apps. That would light a fire under Microsoft's slop factory,
Should not surprise. (Score:2)
When your next version is shittier than the existing version, a significant number of existing customers will say "no thanks" and stay on the existing version, because functionality always trumps marketing bullshit.
This is not new. It's not new, even for Microsoft. See: Windows ME, Windows 8.
Re: (Score:2)
Hint: Microsoft has a tendancy to put out GARBAGE..
Of course, it's the last version of Windows! (Score:2)
I'm a well informed person, I distinctly remember Microsoft explaining that [1]Windows 10 is the last version of Windows [theverge.com] so anyone not using Windows 10 is either on an earlier version or a non-Windows OS.
I mean, if it's not true then it would have to mean that Microsoft is morally bankrupt and maliciously seeks to deceive customers for their own benefit, should be prosecuted for false advertising, and broken into several parts because they operate a coercive monopoly.
[1] https://www.theverge.com/2015/5/7/8568473/windows-10-last-version-of-windows
I'm still on it (Score:2)
I haven't had the energy to try out Linux and proton even though it gets better every day. Eventually Microsoft or valve will force me off it and when that happens I don't know what I'll do. I want to keep playing games and I don't play a lot of multiplayer games but holy Christ Windows 11 sucks.
I can't even ignore all the spying and other bad things like I can with Android. Windows 11 is incredibly slow and it's constantly pausing and breaking my concentration and line of thought. You can disable some
Oh rly. (Score:2)
Thank god The Register pointed out that 16,9 % is more than one in six, otherwise I would never have worked that out.
Well (Score:2)
Well, windows 11 doesn't work, full stop.
Shrug. My machine won't run 11. (Score:3)
Nor will my mom's machine, mother-in-law's machine, and wife's machine.
As I depend on a software suite that doesn't yet run on Linux, I'm kinda trapped. My machine is studly and in fine shape. I'm not going to replace it at this time.
So, Microsoft can continue clutching their pearls.
Or.... they could perhaps come out with a version of Windows that doesn't depend on TPM 2.
Or, I could bite the bullet and switch to Linux. I already have Mint running on a laptop, and it's pretty nifty.
Re: (Score:2)
And new PC's cost an arm & leg thanks to the AI bubble.
Oh Noes (Score:2)
Yes, folks still use Windows 10 because:
1) Windows 11 now includes CoPilot, extra telemetry, Windows Recall and mandatory updates
which continue to cause almost as many problems as they try to solve.
2) Too much software still doesn't work on Linux
My machine is more than capable of running Windows 11, yet I am still running Windows 10
on it ( and have a cloned SSD with Win 10 on standby in case my running copy keels over ).
I'm tired of having to upgrade just for the sake of upgrading. Win 10
Laptop (Score:2)
I have a Broadwell era laptop running Windows 10. It's plenty fast enough to do office work and display PowerPoint presentations. It would be a shame to trash it just because of OS support.
Re-enable updates with an account (Score:2)
I can across this recently: how to enrol a Windows 10 system in to extended security updates without having to have a Microsoft account. Just run .\Consumer_ESU_Enrollment.ps1 -local from a PowerShell prompt and rebooted.
[1]https://github.com/abbodi1406/... [github.com]
[1] https://github.com/abbodi1406/ConsumerESU/
652 on Windows 11 (Score:2)
Story buries the lede... 652 unpatched vulnerabilities on Windows 11 isn't really much better than 1,903 on Windows 10, since it only takes one actively exploitable vulnerability, though I realize most of those are (hopefully) not critical vulnerabilities. Course take it all with a grain of salt, since the article is basically an ad for a company selling Windows security compliance services.
I know of dozens of people still using Windows 10 (without updates) -- at this point it's probably still not really a
And it's entirely Microsoft's fault (Score:5, Insightful)
If they hadn't increased the enshittification by an order of magnitude between 10 and 11, and hadn't unnecessarily made perfectly good but slightly-older computers obsolete with Win 11, then a much higher number of people would have made the switch.
Fuck Microsoft, and double-fuck Satya.
Re: (Score:1)
username checks out
Re: And it's entirely Microsoft's fault (Score:2)
I run an old PC on my attic. It is used as a cnc controller, it controls my electronics lab. The machine is way too good for what I use it for. Not compatible with windows 11. I am not going to buy a new one. It is a waste of money. These days, decade old hardware is still great for every day use. Microsoft of course had to spoil all that. So far no security issues. I may switch the machine to Linux one day.
Re: (Score:2)
This was about deciding that millions of computers no longer deserved to run an upgraded windows 11. So fine, in the case of Microsoft being unsympathetic towards all those people, many who likely could not simply purchage a new computer with their new windows version 11..... Screw em, right??
Re: (Score:2)
Better idea: how about we start getting rid of change for the sake of change. My 5 year old dishwasher runs roughly the same as the one I grew up with in the 70s and 80s. That one was made in the 1960s.
Re: (Score:3)
Did they really, though? Microsoft backported most of the Copilot AI and Edge/XBox/Office/OneDrive promotion crap to the later releases of Windows 10. If you were on the last 22H2 release and logged in with a Microsoft account, you already had about 80% of the Windows 11 enshittification installed whether you wanted it or not.
Re: (Score:2)
And thanks to Chris Titus you can get rid of that 80% plus about 110% more! I've set up Windows 10 on i7-3770 systems with 8GB of RAM. After the Titus touch it runs just as well as Windows 7 would have on the same machine. Put 16GB of RAM in that same system and you have a system that outshines even the best of Windows 11 machines. Yes, this is entirely Microsoft's fault. Windows 11 is an abomination.
Re: (Score:2)
But you also had a pretty good UI design. Windows 11 fixed that.