With Windows 10 support set to expire on October 14, hundreds of repair shops, non-profits, and advocacy groups are urging Microsoft to extend free and automatic security updates instead of stranding hundreds of millions of PCs.

The letter, organised by consumer activist non-profit US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), was signed by 382 repair businesses and nonprofits worldwide, as well as 83 elected representatives, 19 librarians and school officials, and 49 consumer advocacy and environmental organisations. They’re all worried that they, and many other PC owners, stand to lose big if Microsoft follows through with its plans to end support for Windows 10 in less than two weeks.

“About 40 percent of PCs currently in use can’t upgrade to Windows 11, even if users want to,” the letter reads. “That means when Microsoft stops providing security updates for Windows 10, those computers will either be insecure and unsafe to keep using, or else turn into junk and get thrown out.”

Along with the business-led letter to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, PIRG said it also passed along a petition to Microsoft signed by more than 16,000 US citizens. French non-profit Stop Planned Obsolescence has also been circulating a petition to extend free Windows 10 security updates, which has been signed by more than 44,000 individuals.

Critics argue Microsoft’s Windows 11 push is worsening the world’s growing e-waste problem. As we’ve noted before, the supported upgrade path requires PCs to have Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 – a hardware-based security component found in many machines shipped over the past five years – along with other modern hardware. Unofficial bypasses exist, but they aren’t supported and may break in future updates.

In practice, that leaves a huge chunk of hardware behind – PIRG estimates around 400 million Windows 10 machines can’t meet Windows 11’s requirements. While Microsoft has patched certain TPM bypasses, many argue that such devices may never be officially upgradeable.

“Cutting off support from hundreds of millions of computers is uniquely harmful to consumers, the environment and public safety,” PIRG right to repair campaign director Nathan Proctor said in a statement. “Simply put, there have never been more computers cut off from support in one fell swoop.”

While support for Windows 10 officially ends in a couple of weeks, it won’t be completely going away – those who really want to keep the security updates flowing can sign with Microsoft to get a year of extended security updates for the price of $30, redemption of 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points, or opting to sync their PC’s settings to the cloud using Windows Backup.

Microsoft recently caved on providing free Windows 10 updates to European residents following complaints from consumer rights groups and threats to lodge a Digital Markets Act complaint.

Windows 11 continues to be a slow-seller – it took the OS four years to finally surpass Windows 10 as the leading version of the PC OS, and even then, it still doesn’t have a true majority. According to Statcounter, which measures market share of various platforms based on traffic to more than 1.5 million monitored web sites, Windows 11 holds 48.94 percent of the Windows market share, down from a high of 53 percent in July.

Curiously enough, Windows 7 has been experiencing a resurgence in popularity in the past few months, climbing from just two percent of the Windows market share in July to nearly 10 percent in September. No matter how you slice it, it seems like people really don’t want to upgrade to Windows 11.

Microsoft has confirmed that paying $30 to enrol a Windows 10 PC into the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program will also require a Microsoft Account to complete the transaction. The good news is that one ESU license will cover up to 10 devices signed into the same account, meaning you don’t need to pay $30 per device like originally thought. Strangely, this was not made clear in Microsoft’s original announcement.

This is both good and bad news. It’s good news as it means the $30 license is now much more reasonable, but bad news as it means you will still need to register a Microsoft Account to receive continued security updates beyond Windows 10’s end of support date of October 14, 2025.

Originally, it sounded like the Microsoft Account requirement only applied to the free enrolment option when signing up for the ESU program. This method involves syncing your PC settings with OneDrive in exchange for free access to updates. Users thought they might be able to avoid registering a Microsoft Account by paying the $30 fee.

But now, the company has confirmed that all enrolment options require a Microsoft Account, regardless of if you’re paying $30 or not. A Microsoft support document makes it abundantly clear:

“All enrolment options provide extended security updates through October 13, 2026. You will need to sign into your Microsoft account in order to enrol in ESU. You’ll be given these options to choose from when you enrol in the ESU program. You can use your existing ESU license on up to 10 devices.”

The enrolment options the above mentions are as follows:

Some customers of Broadcom’s VMware business currently cannot access security patches, putting them at greater risk of attack.

Customers in that perilous position hold perpetual licenses for VMware products but do not have a current support contract with Broadcom, which will not renew those contracts unless users sign up for software subscriptions. Yet many customers in this situation run products that Broadcom continues to support with patches and updates.

In April 2024, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan promised “free access to zero-day security patches for supported versions of vSphere” so customers “are able to use perpetual licenses in a safe and secure fashion.”

VMware patches aren’t freely available; users must log on to Broadcom’s support portal to access the software.

Some VMware users in this situation have said that when they enter the portal they cannot download patches, and that VMware support staff have told them it may be 90 days before the software fixes become available.

One VMware customer shared the following screenshot: