Windows 10 End of Support 2025: Kaspersky Telemetry Signals Urgent Upgrade

Kaspersky’s telemetry snapshot landed like a warning siren for IT teams and home users: more than half of monitored devices in the vendor’s dataset were still running Windows 10 as Microsoft’s official end-of-support deadline approached, leaving a large population of endpoints exposed the moment routine security updates stop.

Background​

Windows 10 has been the dominant desktop operating system since its 2015 launch, but its lifecycle is finite and plainly scheduled: Microsoft’s support for Windows 10 ends on October 14, 2025. After that date, Microsoft will cease issuing routine security and quality updates for mainstream Windows 10 editions unless systems are enrolled in Extended Security Updates (ESU) or migrated to a supported OS.
Security vendors, web-analytics trackers and OEMs measure adoption differently, and those methodological differences matter when interpreting claims about who is — and isn’t — ready for the cutoff. Kaspersky’s analysis relies on anonymized OS metadata from consenting devices running Kaspersky products, which is valuable for endpoint-risk visibility but is not a random global census. The vendor’s topline figures therefore reflect a telemetry snapshot of Kaspersky’s installed base and should be treated as a directional risk signal rather than an absolute market share statistic.

What Kaspersky reported — the numbers​

Kaspersky’s headline findings in the telemetry snapshot were stark and easily summarized:

• Roughly 53% of monitored devices were still running Windows 10.
• About 33% had migrated to Windows 11.
• A non‑negligible 8.5% of devices in the sample remained on Windows 7, an OS that lost official support in 2020.
• The corporate environment was slower to migrate: Kaspersky’s telemetry showed approximately 59.5% of corporate endpoints on Windows 10, while small-business devices were closer to 51%.

Those numbers have been widely circulated in industry coverage because they highlight a clear operational risk: a majority of endpoints in Kaspersky’s sample would enter an unsupported state when Microsoft stops issuing monthly security patches on October 14, 2025.

Why the numbers diverge across trackers​

Different measurement methods answer different questions. Two commonly cited approaches are:

• Security-vendor telemetry (installed-base snapshots): samples devices that report to a vendor’s product, useful for endpoint risk assessment and corporate fleet visibility. Kaspersky’s KSN is an example.
• Pageview-based web analytics (active usage snapshots): samples browser sessions across a network of sites to estimate which OS versions are actively used for browsing. StatCounter is a widely cited example and showed Windows 11 achieving parity or a narrow lead in pageview share in mid‑2025.

Those methodological differences explain why Kaspersky’s installed-base telemetry can show a substantially higher Windows 10 share than web‑traffic measures. Endpoint telemetry often overrepresents corporate and security-conscious customers — precisely the segments where upgrades are cost‑constrained by procurement cycles and compatibility testing.

The security calculus: what ends on October 14, 2025​

Microsoft’s lifecycle calendar makes the operational effect plain: after October 14, 2025, mainstream Windows 10 editions will no longer receive routine security patches, quality updates, or standard technical support—unless the device is covered by Microsoft’s Extended Security Updates. That cliff transforms previously supported systems into long-term attack surfaces for any newly discovered vulnerabilities.
The practical implications are immediate:

• Newly discovered OS-level vulnerabilities will not be patched on unsupported Windows 10 installations.
• Attackers routinely profile unpatched platforms and scale exploitation rapidly.
• Compliance regimes and cyber‑insurance policies may change risk calculations for organisations that continue to run unsupported OS versions.

Strengths of Kaspersky’s evidence — why the alarm is credible​

Kaspersky’s snapshot is operationally meaningful for several reasons:

• It is derived from a large volume of real-world endpoints reporting nightly telemetry, providing timely insight into the OS mix seen by security products.
• The data reveals not just consumer machines but a noticeable corporate footprint where Windows 10 remained dominant — and corporate fleets are particularly consequential because they hold sensitive data and privileged accounts.
• Multiple independent indicators (vendor telemetry, OEM commentary and representative surveys) produced complementary conclusions: many machines would still be on Windows 10 when Microsoft’s cutoff arrived. That triangulation strengthens the operational argument even if absolute percentages differ by source. fileciteturn0file15turn0file10

Limitations and risks in interpreting the telemetry​

The Kaspersky figures should be read with method-awareness and caution:

• Sampling bias: Kaspersky’s KSN reflects consenting users of Kaspersky products. Markets or verticals where Kaspersky has greater penetration will weigh more heavily in the sample. That skews the dataset relative to a probability-based global census.
• Regional and sectoral variance: Adoption rates for Windows 11 vary widely by geography, industry and purchase cycles. A country or organisation with older fleets will typically show higher Windows 10 shares than a modernized corporate estate.
• Different operational questions: Pageview trackers reflect active browsing devices and user behaviour more than raw installed base. Using a single dataset to claim a universal market share is inappropriate.

When reporting the headline figures, it is critical to accompany them with these caveats so readers and IT decision-makers can correctly size the risk for their specific estates.

---

What this means for consumers and businesses​

The practical choices facing device owners fall into three broad categories: upgrade, buy time (ESU), or accept and mitigate the increased risk. Each path has tradeoffs.

Upgrade to Windows 11 (recommended where possible)​

Benefits:

• Continued security updates and new features.
• Improved hardware-backed security (TPM 2.0, VBS, Secure Boot) for eligible devices.
• Simpler long-term maintenance and vendor support alignment.

Barriers:

• Windows 11 has stricter hardware requirements (TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, certain CPU families), meaning older PCs often can’t upgrade in-place.
• Enterprises must pilot and test application compatibility, driver stability and user workflows before broad rollouts.

Enroll in Extended Security Updates (ESU) — a time-bound bridge​

Microsoft provided an ESU pathway to give organisations and consumers breathing room. The consumer ESU option was explicitly positioned as a limited bridge through the consumer enrollment window; commercial ESU is priced separately and designed for organisations that need time to plan refresh cycles. ESU is a stopgap, not a long-term substitute for migration. fileciteturn0file6turn0file15

Accept the risk and mitigate​

For devices that remain on Windows 10 after the cutoff without ESU, mitigation strategies can reduce—but not eliminate—exposure:

• Isolate and segment legacy machines from high-value networks.
• Disable or tightly control remote access services (RDP) and enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA).
• Deploy enhanced endpoint protection with exploit prevention and behavior-based detection.
• Maintain strict patching for third-party apps and firmware where vendors still provide updates.

These mitigations lower near-term risk but do not replace the value of OS-level security patches for new kernel or driver vulnerabilities.

A practical migration playbook for IT teams​

Organisations that have not completed migration must move from awareness to action with an auditable plan. The following is a pragmatic sequence, prioritised by risk and feasibility.

• Inventory: Create an authoritative inventory of devices, their OS versions, hardware specifications and installed line-of-business applications. Use management tools (SCCM/Intune/MDM) and endpoint telemetry to reconcile counts.
• Risk-rank: Identify high-risk endpoints (domains joined, privileged users, internet-facing systems, servers) and mark them for immediate attention.
• Compatibility testing: Choose a representative pilot cohort and test upgrades to Windows 11. Validate critical apps, drivers, and printing/line-of-business workflows.
• Enrollment decisions: For devices that cannot be upgraded immediately, decide ESU enrollment vs. hardware refresh based on business criticality and budget.
• Segmentation and hardening: For remaining legacy endpoints, apply network segmentation, tighten remote access, and enable enhanced endpoint exploit prevention.
• Rollout and post‑upgrade validation: Execute phased rollouts with rollback plans and spot-check telemetry to confirm compliance.
• Communication and training: Prepare user-facing change notes and quick-reference guides to reduce support tickets after migration.

This structured, prioritized approach reduces the chance of rushed, failed upgrades or unplanned outages during what will be a busy migration window.

The macro picture: economics, procurement cycles and e‑waste​

The Windows 10 end-of-support event creates ripples beyond security. Organisations with multi‑year refresh cycles must now reconcile procurement timetables with an immovable lifecycle date. For price-sensitive markets, the cost of mass replacement or paid ESU packages is a material factor, and some regions will see increased demand for refurbished or low-cost replacement hardware as a stopgap. These choices raise environmental and policy questions around e‑waste and equitable access to safe computing.
At the same time, device makers, vendors and service providers will be presented with commercial opportunities—from migration services to refurbished-device offers. Decision-makers should balance short-term cost minimisation against longer-term operational risks and hidden costs such as breach remediation, compliance penalties, and downtime.

Threat outlook: what attackers are likely to do​

Historically, attackers accelerate campaigns against unsupported platforms because they know the vendor will no longer close new vulnerabilities. The post-EOL period is a high-reward environment for attackers:

• Automated mass‑scanning and exploitation of newly discovered kernel or driver bugs.
• Increased targeting of isolated but critical assets (OT, industrial systems, point‑of‑sale) where Windows 7 and Windows 10 still persist.
• Supply‑chain attacks that exploit unpatched endpoints as lateral movement footholds.

These attack patterns are not speculative; they have precedent in previous sunsets (for example, Windows 7 and XP). Organisations that defer migration must assume escalated threat activity and adjust detection and incident response playbooks accordingly.

What consumers should do now​

• Check device eligibility for Windows 11 using PC Health Check or Settings > Windows Update.
• Back up important data and create a tested recovery plan before attempting upgrades.
• If a device is ineligible and remains critical, consider ESU enrollment or plan a hardware replacement.
• Harden any device you plan to keep on Windows 10 after October 14: patch third‑party apps, use strong endpoint protection, disable unnecessary services and avoid using the device for sensitive transactions. fileciteturn0file5turn0file6

Policy and vendor considerations​

The consumer ESU option and commercial ESU pricing have drawn policy scrutiny: a patch‑behind paywall raises questions about equitable access to basic security protections for vulnerable populations. Some advocacy groups and consumer-rights organisations have urged extended or subsidised coverage for low-income users and critical public services. Whether regulators will intervene or vendor programs will be modified remains a policy debate, but organisations subject to regulatory compliance should not assume policy relief will alter technical obligations.

Final assessment — strengths, shortcomings and the imperative​

Kaspersky’s telemetry snapshot is a blunt, necessary alarm: in their monitored sample more than half of devices were still on Windows 10 and corporate fleets skewed even higher toward the older OS. That finding is valuable because security vendors directly observe endpoint inventories and threat signals and therefore see where the operational risk concentrates. At the same time, the snapshot is not a universal census; it must be read alongside pageview trackers, OEM inventories and organisation-level audits to produce an accurate migration plan. fileciteturn0file0turn0file10
The bottom line for readers is unambiguous and operational: treat October 14, 2025 as a hard deadline for Windows 10 lifecycle support. Inventory your estate, prioritise the most sensitive endpoints for immediate remediation, and choose a clear path—upgrade, ESU, or controlled isolation—before the cutoff. The minor short-term disruption of a tested upgrade or a short ESU enrollment is, in the security calculus, far smaller than the potential cost and fallout of a post‑EOL breach. fileciteturn0file8turn0file5

---

Quick checklist (7–30 day sprint)​

• Inventory all devices and classify by business criticality.
• Run Windows 11 compatibility checks where feasible.
• Identify devices that require ESU and start enrollment processes.
• Harden and segment legacy systems you cannot immediately upgrade.
• Pilot Windows 11 rollouts on a small cohort; validate backups and rollback procedures.

Conclusion​

The Kaspersky report crystallises a simple but uncomfortable truth: a substantial share of devices — particularly in corporate fleets — will enter an unsupported, high‑risk state when Microsoft stops issuing routine Windows 10 security updates on October 14, 2025. The finding is not a prediction of imminent disaster, but it is a practical call to action. Organisations and consumers must move from awareness to auditable action: inventory, triage, upgrade or enroll in ESU, and harden any systems that remain on Windows 10. The clock is unforgiving; the choices are concrete; and the cost of delay is both technical and financial. fileciteturn0file0turn0file8

---

Source: varindia.com Windows 10 as Microsoft support nears end