3 ms·

Hasn't still happened with Windows 7.

by vasdae 3y ago

Ographer 3y ago
That doesn't necessarily mean that there is not a zero day available for Windows 7 or that hackers don't have access to those systems in some way. The good zero days are found by or sold to governments or elite independent hacking groups working on an international level. They tend to be more interested in targeted attacks against specific individuals or organizations. Once a zero day is leaked to the public, typically it is quickly adopted by botnet operators to take advantage of un-patched systems.
- FirmwareBurner 3y ago
  That's mostly a lot of fantasy "what ifs" and a nothing-burger for everyone else in the real world. If you know yourself to be a potential target for governments zero days, then you probably won't be running Windows 7 anymore. If you're an important asset and still running Windows 7 on-line when free upgrades to Windows 10 were available in the last 8 years, you should fire your sys-admin as even bottom of the barrel Wallmart laptops sell with Windows 11 for over a year now.
  - Ographer 3y ago
    That's exactly how people end up the victim of a ransomware attack. It's not worth it unless you really don't care about your computer and attached storage. I'm not a government agent but I'm still not risking it on my personal computer. Once a zero day is leaked online, it becomes the most powerful weapon to getting into a given system. Even when Microsoft races to put out a patch, millions of systems can be compromised first. It has happened before so it's not so hypothetical.
HideousKojima 3y ago
Because Microsoft has decided to continue providing security patches for severe vulnerabilities despite it being out of support: https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/14/microsoft-zero-day-windows/ https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/14/microsoft-zero-day-windows... But you have no guarantee from Microsoft that they'll continue to do so like you do with something still in lifecycle.
opan 3y ago
Would you really know if it had happened? I imagine a high profile incident would need to result from it for most people to realize.
shinratdr 3y ago
Windows 7 and Windows 10 had very similar minimum hardware requirements, and few if any artificial restrictions on what hardware is supported. Same with Windows XP when moving to Windows 7. Technology was also much faster moving and new significant features that benefited from hardware improvements were being introduced all the time. Now the focus is on efficiency and power consumption. As a result, any computer made in the last 10-12 years will be perfectly suitable for what 90% of people use their computers for. The 8th generation Intel cutoff for Windows 11 is ridiculous and is causing this problem. Yes, Windows 11 works fine on older hardware if you force it to install but most people will not go this route. They’ll continue to use their insecure PC on the internet because it runs very well and does everything they need it to do, and we’ll have a nightmare on our hands. The landscape is totally different from XP to 7 and from 7 to 10. Microsoft knows that and these pointless hardware reqs are a transparent attempt to force people to upgrade for no reason. The desktop and laptop market has fully stalled, and there is no compelling reason to upgrade your computer if you aren’t using it for gaming or processor/GPU intensive work. This is their attempt to boost sales without innovating, and it’s going to be devastating.
- FirmwareBurner 3y ago
  >The 8th generation Intel cutoff for Windows 11 is ridiculous and is causing this problem. Not true: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34678812 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34678812

Hasn't still happened with Windows 7.

by vasdae 3y ago

Hasn't still happened with Windows 7.

That doesn't necessarily mean that there is not a zero day available for Windows 7 or that hackers don't have access to those systems in some way. The good zero days are found by or sold to governments or elite independent hacking groups working on an international level. They tend to be more interested in targeted attacks against specific individuals or organizations. Once a zero day is leaked to the public, typically it is quickly adopted by botnet operators to take advantage of un-patched systems.

FirmwareBurner 3y ago
That's mostly a lot of fantasy "what ifs" and a nothing-burger for everyone else in the real world. If you know yourself to be a potential target for governments zero days, then you probably won't be running Windows 7 anymore. If you're an important asset and still running Windows 7 on-line when free upgrades to Windows 10 were available in the last 8 years, you should fire your sys-admin as even bottom of the barrel Wallmart laptops sell with Windows 11 for over a year now.
- Ographer 3y ago
  That's exactly how people end up the victim of a ransomware attack. It's not worth it unless you really don't care about your computer and attached storage. I'm not a government agent but I'm still not risking it on my personal computer. Once a zero day is leaked online, it becomes the most powerful weapon to getting into a given system. Even when Microsoft races to put out a patch, millions of systems can be compromised first. It has happened before so it's not so hypothetical.

HideousKojima 3y ago

Because Microsoft has decided to continue providing security patches for severe vulnerabilities despite it being out of support: https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/14/microsoft-zero-day-windows/ https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/14/microsoft-zero-day-windows... But you have no guarantee from Microsoft that they'll continue to do so like you do with something still in lifecycle.

opan 3y ago

Would you really know if it had happened? I imagine a high profile incident would need to result from it for most people to realize.

shinratdr 3y ago

Windows 7 and Windows 10 had very similar minimum hardware requirements, and few if any artificial restrictions on what hardware is supported. Same with Windows XP when moving to Windows 7. Technology was also much faster moving and new significant features that benefited from hardware improvements were being introduced all the time. Now the focus is on efficiency and power consumption. As a result, any computer made in the last 10-12 years will be perfectly suitable for what 90% of people use their computers for. The 8th generation Intel cutoff for Windows 11 is ridiculous and is causing this problem. Yes, Windows 11 works fine on older hardware if you force it to install but most people will not go this route. They’ll continue to use their insecure PC on the internet because it runs very well and does everything they need it to do, and we’ll have a nightmare on our hands. The landscape is totally different from XP to 7 and from 7 to 10. Microsoft knows that and these pointless hardware reqs are a transparent attempt to force people to upgrade for no reason. The desktop and laptop market has fully stalled, and there is no compelling reason to upgrade your computer if you aren’t using it for gaming or processor/GPU intensive work. This is their attempt to boost sales without innovating, and it’s going to be devastating.

FirmwareBurner 3y ago
>The 8th generation Intel cutoff for Windows 11 is ridiculous and is causing this problem. Not true: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34678812 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34678812