14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft ended Windows XP support on April 8, 2014, but the company decided to offer anti-malware updates for its security apps running on this particular OS version for another year and a half, thus trying to keep users who were yet to upgrade protected until they complete the process.
Today, however, anti-malware support for Windows XP has come to an end too, so Microsoft’s security solutions are no longer getting updates on the 14-year-old operating system.
As a result, if you’re a Windows XP user still running Microsoft Security Essentials, you’re highly recommended to upgrade to a newer Windows version or to install a different security software solution to protect your computer. There are plenty of them still offering support for Windows XP, and the freeware versions of Avast and AVG are two of the best.
In the case of enterprises, this anti-malware support end for Windows XP concerns System Center Endpoint Protection, Forefront Client Security, Forefront Endpoint Protection and Microsoft Intune.
Windows XP still not secure
Despite the fact that you can still install third-party anti-malware software on Windows XP, Microsoft warns that computers running this particular OS version are still unprotected because of security holes that are no longer patched.
“While the anti-malware updates enable the ability to detect and block certain malware on Windows XP PCs, it is important to note that since the underlying vulnerability in the Windows XP operating system will not be patched with a new security update, a new strain of malware attacking the same vulnerability may not be detected in the future and may be able to infect the PC,” Microsoft says.
Windows XP still has a market share of approximately 10 percent, according to third-party data, despite the fact that it hasn’t receive a single update in the last 12 months.
Microsoft hopes that Windows 10 would help reduce Windows XP’s market share, but obviously, users still running this particular OS version would also need hardware upgrades to get a better experience in the new operating system.