"From the 14th of October 2025, Microsoft announced that it will no longer freely provide security updates for their popular operating system, Windows 10. This is important news for the 240 Million people who use Windows 10 on their personal and work computers. It means that the security features, and consequently the privacy protections, of computers running Windows 10 will start to degrade over time."
"Microsoft first released Windows 10 in July 2015. It was their flagship operating system (OS) up until the release of Windows 11 in 2021. For a number of years now, Microsoft have been in an extended process of winding down their support of Windows 10, with the last feature update (22H2) in 2022 and now with the last (free) security update scheduled for October 14th, 2025."
Microsoft will stop providing free security updates for Windows 10 after October 14, 2025, affecting about 240 million users. Security features and privacy protections on affected devices will degrade over time as unpatched vulnerabilities accumulate. Microsoft prefers users to upgrade to Windows 11, but many devices are incompatible or users are unwilling to switch. Available alternatives include paid extended support updates (ESU) and Long Term Servicing Channel (LTSC) releases, each with costs and trade-offs. April 2024 announcements introduced ESU for businesses with escalating costs and a reduced $1 per-device price for schools. Mixed messaging and changing options have increased confusion.
Read at Privacy International
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