Windows 10 users urged to upgrade to avoid “security fiasco”

​Cybersecurity firm ESET is urging Windows 10 users to upgrade to Windows 11 or Linux to avoid a “security fiasco” as the 10-year-old operating system nears the end of support in October 2025.

“It’s five minutes to twelve to avoid a security fiasco for 2025,” explains ESET security expert Thorsten Urbanski.

“We strongly advise all users not to wait until October, but to switch to Windows 11 immediately or choose an alternative operating system if their device cannot be updated to the latest Windows operating system. Otherwise, users expose themselves to considerable security risks and make themselves vulnerable to dangerous cyber attacks and data loss.”

On October 14, 2025, Windows 10 will no longer receive free security updates for the operating system unless owners purchase extended security updates. This means that Windows 10 users will be at risk of any new vulnerabilities that are discovered, which could lead to significant breaches and malware distribution.

According to ESET, approximately 32 million computers in Germany run Windows 10, making it around 65 percent of all devices in households. In contrast, Windows 11 runs on only 33% of German devices, which is approximately 16.5 million devices.

StatCounter backs up these figures, and as of December 2024, almost 63% of all Windows users worldwide are using Windows 10, compared to about 34% who are using Windows 11.

The Steam Hardware & Software Survey paints a better picture for Windows 11 gamers, with 54.96% utilizing Windows 11 and only 42.39% using Windows 10 as of the end of 2024.

However, gamers tend to be on the cutting edge of hardware, commonly upgrading their components and devices to play the latest games with good performance.

On the other hand, businesses and other consumers tend to lag behind as their older computers still run well, and there has not been a real need to upgrade yet.

This Windows version transition is worse than when users migrated from Windows 7, as almost 70% of users were using Windows 10 before Windows 7 reached the end of support.

“The situation is more dangerous than when support for Windows 7 ended in early 2020,” explains Urbanski.

“Even before the official date, at the end of 2019, only around 20 percent of users were still using Windows 7. Over 70 percent were already using the new Windows 10. The current situation is extremely dangerous. Cyber ​​criminals know these numbers very well and are just waiting for the day when support ends.”

Many Windows 10 users have been hesitant to upgrade to Windows 11 due to popular features being missing in the newer operating system, performance issues, and TPM (Trusted Platform Module) TPM hardware requirement, which is preventing some older devices from upgrading.

The issue is compounded by the fact that many of these older devices run Windows 10, and likely Windows 11, without a problem, but they can’t be used because of a missing TPM.

Microsoft recently stated that the Windows 11 TPM requirement is “non-negotiable” as it powers numerous security features, such as how the operating system stores cryptography keys and protects credentials, and is integrated with Secure Boot and Windows Hello for Business.

For those who cannot upgrade their devices to Windows 10, Microsoft offers extended security updates (ESU) to businesses and consumers. However, they are not cheap.

Businesses who wish to receive extended security updates can do so for three years, being charged $61 for the first year, $122 for the second year, and $244 for the third. This brings the total price for ESU on a Windows 10 device to $427 over three years.

Microsoft is also offering a consumer ESU program for one year at $30 per device, which is more affordable but can get expensive if you have multiple devices in a household.