Windows 7 end-of-life prompts FBI warning
The Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a warning about the dangers of using Windows 7 now that the operating system has reached its official end-of-life.
In the statement the FBI released, they stated, “The FBI has observed cyber criminals targeting computer network infrastructure after an operating system achieves end of life status. Continuing to use Windows 7 within an enterprise may provide cyber criminals access in to computer systems. As time passes, Windows 7 becomes more vulnerable to exploitation due to lack of security updates and new vulnerabilities discovered.”
The FBI is urging companies to look into upgrading their workstations to newer version of the Windows operating system.
In its alert, the FBI did acknowledge that the cost that companies might need to incur to purchase new hardware and software may be a challenge for some companies; however, they feel that “these challenges do not outweigh the loss of intellectual property and threats to an organization.”
They also took to reminding companies of the issues that arose from healthcare companies failing to upgrade from Windows XP. In that case, the following year the healthcare industry saw a large increase in private patient records that hackers had published online publicly.
When deciding between upgrade costs or taking chances with security, it’s also important to remember that Windows 7 will be unequipped to deal with ransomware hacks where attackers prevent companies from accessing their documents until a ransom has been paid.
In many cases, that ransom fee and/or loss of important internal documents may well end up costing the company more in the long run.
As always, if we can be of help with your network or computer, give us a call here at RHYNO Networks. (855) 749-6648
