Microsoft terminates technical support for Windows XP

Microsoft is pulling the plug on its support for Windows XP on this Tuesday.
This will leave anyone still running the 13-year-old operating system without potentially critical

security updates.
Shin Se-min reports. Windows XP PC users have upgraded and received support for years,...

but as of Tuesday, that help will no longer be available.
Microsoft says it will no longer support the 13-year-old operating system,... which means no

more updates, no free or paid assisted support options and no online technical content

updates.
An estimated one in five PCs world-wide still run on XP,... and while consumers are entitled to

carry on using it for as long as they like,... those who choose to do so will be much more

vulnerable to hackers, viruses and other security risks.
Software will no longer be made to be compatible with XP,... in other words, fewer applications

will be compatible with the current operating system.
Although Microsoft has not revealed the reason behind its termination,... industry experts say

the company is trying to eliminate the competition as it has produced three other operating

systems since the release of Windows XP in 2001.

Microsoft is ending support for everyday consumers,...but it'll continue to maintain and

upgrade XP system services in a corporate environment.

"Government or financial firm could continue to get support years down the road. Some

rumors are estimating around 5-million U.S. dollars per year,... or 2-hundred dollars per PC per

year for the first year,... and Microsoft plans to double it every year. So they are punitively

requiring companies to upgrade within the next three years."

The termination not only poses security threats to personal computers,... but also to many

ATMs,... as thousands of cash machines also run on Windows XP.
According to manufacturer NCR, Windows XP system is embedded in nearly 75-percent of

ATMs,... raising concerns they could also be prone to security risks.
Shin Se-min, Arirang News.