The US National Security Agency has issued a rare warning about a security vulnerability found in Microsoft Windows 10.
Almost one billion computers use this software, meaning that a glitch has the potential to wreak damage on a global scale.
Describing the flaw as ‘severe’, the NSA said it allows hackers to bypass protections and run their own malicious software.
Cyber-crooks are notoriously inventive and always on the lookout for new ways to pinch people’s money, steal their identity or infect their computer with viruses which perform some other nefarious task.
The bug could allow them to run software which looks as if it’s made by a trusted source, but is actually designed to carry out malicious attacks or steal information.
‘Sophisticated cyber actors will understand the underlying flaw very quickly and, if exploited, it would render [Windows 10] platforms as fundamentally vulnerable.
Luckily, Microsoft has issued a patch fixing the problem which you should install immediately.
‘The consequences of not patching the vulnerability are severe and widespread,’ the NSA added.
‘Remote exploitation tools will likely be made quickly and widely available.
‘Rapid adoption of the patch is the only known mitigation at this time and should be the primary focus for all network owners.’
Anne Neuberger, NSA director of Cybersecurity, held a press conference stating that the NSA reported the vulnerability and that ‘this was the first time Microsoft will have credited NSA for reporting a security flaw.’
Computer security expert Dmitri Alperovitch wrote in a tweet: ‘Big kudos to NSA for voluntarily disclosing to Microsoft.’
‘This is the type of [vulnerability] I am sure the [NSA hackers] would have loved to use for years to come.’
Amit Yoran, CEO of security firm Tenable, said it is ‘exceptionally rare if not unprecedented’ for the U.S. government to share its discovery of such a vulnerability with a company.
Yoran, a former founding director of the Department of Homeland Security’s computer emergency readiness team, urged all organizations to patch their systems immediately.
News of the vulnerability comes after millions of PCs around the world stopped receiving security updates and patches as Microsoft stops support for Windows 7.
When it launched the operating system more than a decade ago, the US tech giant promised ten years of service. Now the time is up and from Tuesday users will no longer receive security updates or patches.
Microsoft is committed to Windows 10, the latest version of the software and has urged all users to upgrade to this version by the cut-off date.
‘If your PC is running Windows 7, it will no longer receive security updates. Therefore, it’s important that you upgrade to a modern operating system such as Windows 10, which can provide the latest security updates to help keep you and your data safer,’ the company said on its support website.
‘If you continue to use Windows 7 after support has ended, your PC will still work, but it will become more vulnerable to security risks and viruses.
‘Your PC will continue to start and run, but you will no longer receive software updates, including security updates, from Microsoft.’
According to estimates from tech site ZDNet, a massive 200 million PCs worldwide are still running on Windows 7.
While Windows 7 machines won’t be rendered obsolete after this week, it does mean using them brings with it an increased risk of security vulnerabilities.
Any new laptop or PC will come with Windows 10 pre-installed. However, older machines will need to be upgraded.
According to Microsoft, a single licence for one PC to upgrade to Windows 10: Home Edition is £119.99.
The company has set up a help page to give users guidance on how to proceed with the upgrade.
‘If you want to get started today, you can visit www.microsoft.com/windows7 to find out more. The transition to Windows 10 and Office 365 has never been simpler and this site is designed to help you along that journey,’ explains Microsoft.
‘The content available will help you with data transfer to easily get your photos and documents onto a new PC. It will also show you tips for choosing a new device and getting up to speed quickly with the familiar but newer versions of Windows and Office.’