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According to a study conducted by Kaspersky, many consumers and businesses still use farming systems that are no longer supported by their producers or whose life is almost complete.
Some 41 percent of users still use legacy operating systems on their desktops that are unsupported or about to end, such as Windows XP and Windows 7, although newer versions are available. At the same time, 40% of small businesses and 48% of SMEs and enterprises remain dependent on these systems, making them extremely vulnerable.
In most cases, the end of life of the operating system means that the manufacturer has stopped issuing software updates, including those related to cybersecurity. But security researchers or cybercriminals can find in these systems unknown gaps that could be exploited to launch cyberattacks and leave users exposed, as they would not receive a software fix because the manufacturer had stopped taking over the software. old system.
Kaspersky researchers analyzed data on the use of operating systems from anonymous KSN users to measure the number of risky systems in order to estimate its size. The results showed that four out of ten consumers still use obsolete systems, including outdated systems such as: Windows XP and Vista.
By looking at some older versions of the operating systems used, we find that 2% of individual users and 1% of very small workstations still use Windows XP, an operating system that does not work. has been more supported for over 10 years. Less than half a percent of individuals (0.3%) and small businesses (0.2%) are still in favor of Windows Vista, whose support ended seven years ago.
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Significantly, some users (1%), small businesses (0.6%), SMBs, and enterprises (0.4%) missed the free upgrade to Windows 8.1 to continue using Windows 8, which Microsoft does not more in charge since. January 2016.
Windows 7 remains a popular choice for individuals and businesses, despite the expiry of extended support in January 2020. 38% of individuals and small businesses and 47% of SMEs and organizations still use their devices. The share of Windows 7 is similar to that of the latest version of Windows 10 in the small and medium businesses and businesses, or 47%.
According to statistics, Alexei Pankratov, head of Kaspersky Enterprise Solutions, estimates that a large percentage of users, whether they are business or individual, still use workstations running on a system. 39, operation expired or near the end. The persistent widespread use of Windows 7 is "worrisome," explaining that it will lose support in less than six months.
"The reasons for this delay vary depending on the software used, which may not be compatible with the most recent versions of the operating systems, it may be economical or just be used to the situation," he said. he declares. However, the existing operating system, which is not up-to-date with software patches, poses no cybersecurity risk and should not be underestimated. The cost of a security incident can be much higher than the cost of upgrading the system. Additional security tools during the transition. "
Kaspersky recommends that individuals and businesses take the following steps to protect themselves from emerging threats, by using an updated version of the operating system with automatic update enabled. If you can not upgrade to the latest version of the operating system, this one becomes a potential vector of attacks that it is advised to companies to take into account in the model Threat and intervention. With him, through the intelligent separation of weak nodes from the rest of the network, in addition to other measures. It is recommended to use Kaspersky Embedded Systems Security (on Windows XP).
Kaspersky also recommends using behavioral solutions to prevent exploitation, such as Kaspersky Security Cloud, Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Business and Kaspersky Small Business Security, in order to reduce the risk of exploits aimed at security systems. Older exploitation (Windows 7 and later).
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