The free ride is over: Windows 10 runs out of patches
Since October 2025, Windows 10 no longer receives free security updates. Microsoft turned off the tap of patches for the most used operating system on the planet, and since then any vulnerability that’s discovered —and they’re discovered daily— goes without an official fix. Using Windows 10 today is like living in a house with the door open.
The company offers a paid Extended Security Updates (ESU) program, but it’s designed for companies and costs 61 € per device during the first year, an amount that doubles each following year. For the average user, the recommendation is clear: upgrade to Windows 11 or, if the device isn’t compatible, consider alternatives like Linux or change computers.
According to StatCounter data, by the end of 2025 still 35% of the world’s PCs were running Windows 10. That’s hundreds of millions of devices that have been navigating without a safety net since October. If you have Windows 10, you’d better get your act together: every day that passes without updates is a day in which any cybercriminal with a new vulnerability has the door open.
— Marta, for inteligencia intermitente.
