I wouldn't use an Android phone for anything safety critical if it was more than 6 months behind the latest security patches. Why would it be any different for

I wouldn't use an Android phone for anything safety critical if it was more than 6 months behind the latest security patches. Why would it be any different for Windows? Of course, we can play the asterisk game and expressly state that if the machine is not connected to the internet and not used to browse the web, then it's probably safe. Or if you like browse the web in a VM. I still have to wonder if the patches for these kinds of issues[1] get backported to Windows 7. As to the appeal for age, I think software ages like seafood in terms of security. Just because it's been deployed for years doesn't mean that there aren't vulnerabilities lurking in that code. Although I will concede that as Windows 7 loses users, the payoff for finding a vulnerability will decrease too. [1]: https://www.sentinelone.com/labs/cve-2021-3438-16-years-in-hiding-millions-of-printers-worldwide-vulnerable/ https://www.sentinelone.com/labs/cve-2021-3438-16-years-in-h...