14 DAY TRIAL // In theory, Windows 10 is available with a paid license, but a loophole that Microsoft itself ignored for years allowed Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users to upgrade free of charge to the new operating system even after a dedicated promo in this regard came to end.
On the other hand, those who didn’t own a genuine Windows 7 or 8.1 key to take advantage of this free upgrade offer turned to a different approach: they purchased free Windows 10 license keys from various online stores that were selling them for pocket money.
It’s not a secret eBay and a few other websites out there sell Windows 10 license keys for just a few dollars, and plenty of users actually turned to them to be able to finally activate the operating system and use it just like a paid product.
Money laundering charges
But the German police are reportedly looking into the whole thing, according to a report from Tarnkappe, with a series of users who purchased these cheap product keys called in to discuss the matter with investigators.
The cited source claims users are being asked to provide statements, though, at first glance, the purpose is to make them incriminate themselves and eventually be accused of money laundering and copyright infringement.
While no confirmation has been provided by the German authorities, several users have reportedly confirmed for the cited source they received similar citations from the police after buying cheap Windows 10 product keys from various websites online. Some say the keys were purchased many years ago, so it’s not yet clear what the police are going after with this new campaign.
For the time being, however, it’s important to handle this information with a decent amount of skepticism, especially because it’s all based on user reports with no official statement in this regard.