Microsoft sued by angry Windows 10 user as | Tech News

You may be miffed that (*10*)Microsoft is ending help for Windows 10 later this yr, however one outraged buyer has gone one additional and is suing the tech giant over it.

As noticed by The Register, California resident Lawrence Klein filed a grievance towards Microsoft over the very fact he owns two Windows 10 laptops that may’t be up to date to Windows 11, and is demanding the firm gives free help for longer than the present October 14, 2025 deadline.

As it stands, after this date Microsoft will no longer ship out free software program updates or security fixes to Windows 10 PCs. At the time of writing, StatCounter exhibits 42.9 % of Windows computer systems worldwide at the moment run Windows 10, in comparison with Windows 11’s 53.5 %.

Klein asks that a decide guidelines Microsoft ought to offer continued free help for Windows 10 “until the number of devices running the OS falls below 10 percent of total Windows users.”

Microsoft is pushing clients to replace their PCs to Windows 11, one thing that’s provided free of charge. But some older machines lack an inner {hardware} part identified as a Trusted Platform Module 2.0, which is required to run Windows 11. It means hundreds of people utilizing a Windows 10 machine that also works completely properly will likely be left with out free security updates.

Microsoft is offering Windows 10 customers a one yr extension of security updates, however it’s charging $30 (£22) for it.

“With only three months until support ends for Windows 10, it is likely that many millions of users will not buy new devices or pay for extended support,” Klein’s legal professionals wrote within the grievance.

“Many individuals and businesses purchased or built devices with the expectation that they would be able to upgrade to a newer Windows operating system without purchasing new hardware,” they mentioned. “In fact, unbeknownst to them, Microsoft was already making plans to update to Windows 11 while devices that continued to run Windows 10 and that were incapable of the upgrade were being sold.

His lawyers also point out that “Microsoft has typically provided longer transition periods for older operating systems,” with Windows 8 help ending eight years after Windows 10 launched and Windows 7 supporting ending eight years after Windows 8 launched.

The grievance quotes estimates that about 500 million Windows 10 units worldwide may be incompatible with Windows 11. The solely method for these customers to get Windows 11 is to buy a new PC.

Oddly, Microsoft has just lately promised to offer security updates for Microsoft 365 apps on Windows 10 for 3 years until October 10, 2028. That means you can proceed to used Word, Excel, PowerPoint and the remaining in relative confidence that they are going to work and be secure.

The fear for Windows 10 clients in any other case is the shortage of security patches will go away them and their online actions open to nefarious exercise from cyber assault, as properly as the very fact their PCs are reaching finish of life sooner than it was anticipated.