As you probably know, Microsoft dropped any support for Windows 7 on January 14 so it doesn’t receive any updates or patches necessary to keep the OS protected. That is unless you are paying for a Security Update (ESU) plan for Windows 7 Professional and Enterprise which will also end in January 2023.
How big is the problem with the EOL Windows 7?
The statistics picked up by the FBI are pretty grim. They cite an open-source report that indicated 71% of unsupported devices used in healthcare organizations. In that respect, the Federal organization reminds about the After the Windows XP end of life episode from April 2014, which led to a surge of exposed records the following year. According to the PIN, since the end of July 2019, malicious Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) exploits increased with the development of a working commercial exploit for the BlueKeep vulnerability. FBI also reminds about the WannaCry ransomware that infected approximately 98% of Windows 7 systems back in 2017.
What is FBI advising against these threats?
This is how FBI outlines the steps needed for countering possible attacks on Windows 7 systems:
Upgrading operating systems to the latest supported version. Ensuring anti-virus, spam filters, and firewalls are up to date, properly configured, and secure. Auditing network configurations and isolate computer systems that cannot be updated. Auditing your network for systems using RDP, closing unused RDP ports, applying two factor authentication wherever possible, and logging RDP login attempts.
If for any reason you can’t upgrade to Windows 10, here’s a list with the best antivirus for your Windows 7. FBI closed the PIN by encouraging everyone to report information concerning such criminal activity to the local FBI field office or the FBI’s 24/7 Cyber Watch (CyWatch). Are you still running Windows 7? Tell us how you feel about the security threats signaled by the authorities.
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