It looks like the German government didn’t heed our words and let some 33,000 machines fall out of date and be exposed to cybersecurity threats by not upgrading to Windows 10.
Now, the Germans are paying up.
According to The Verge, which cited German newspaper Handelsblatt, the German government is facing a bill of about $887,000 to secure machines still running on Windows 7. Microsoft ended support for the operating system earlier this month.
The Germans couldn’t upgrade every computer in time, leaving about 20,000 machines in Berlin offices still running Windows 7. Now, they’ll have to pay for extended security patches, and those aren’t very cheap.
Users and enterprises can pay for up to three years of extended security support, but that cost is about $25 per machine, and that doubles every subsequent year to $50 and $100, respectively.
If you’re using Windows 7 Pro, it’s even more expensive. Those extended updates start at $50 per machine, and that cost doubles in 2021 and 2022.
Read Next: NSA Reportedly Notifies Microsoft Of Major Windows Security Vulnerability
Windows 7 users with active Windows 10 subscriptions will get one year of free updates, but you’re better off upgrading to Windows 10, which you might be able to do for free.
Of course, you can still use Windows 7, but with outdated technology, you run the risk of a security breach and putting the wellbeing of your organization in jeopardy.
For those who are being very stubborn or just slow to change, Microsoft will basically bug you until you upgrade to Windows 10 or buy a new PC with the operating system on it.
Earlier this month, a full-screen notification appeared, warning that support for Windows 7 is over.
The company says it will no longer support Windows 7, but it issued an update to users of Windows XP last May, more than five years after the company stopped issuing regular patches.
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