Overview

• Microsoft’s consumer ESU enrollment is open now, with users told to sign up before October 14 to keep receiving monthly security updates for Windows 10.
• Enrollment options include syncing PC settings to the cloud via Windows Backup or redeeming 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points, with a paid path also available and free access in the European Economic Area.
• Advocacy groups including PIRG, The Restart Project and End of 10 warn the cutoff could render up to 400 million PCs effectively obsolete, deepen the digital divide and increase e‑waste, and they promote alternatives such as Linux for older hardware.
• Estimates suggest 400 million to 550 million devices still run Windows 10, and many cannot upgrade to Windows 11 due to strict hardware requirements like TPM 2.0 and newer CPUs.
• Market trackers report Windows 11 recently overtook Windows 10 in share, while reports of a sudden Windows 7 surge are widely viewed as a data anomaly and Microsoft cautions against using unsupported systems due to heightened security risk.