Microsoft Windows legacy devices face nearly three‑fold higher vulnerability risk

Eight months after Microsoft ended support for Windows 10, about 16.9% of Windows devices still run the older OS. Data from Lansweeper covering nearly 10 million assets shows a Windows 10 machine carries an average of 1,903 active CVEs, compared with 652 on Windows 11 – a 2.9‑times higher risk. Smaller businesses and sectors such as healthcare, pharmaceuticals and retail have the highest concentrations of legacy systems.

A separate Mozilla‑published study found that Windows 10 and Windows 11 continue to impede users from installing or setting a non‑Edge browser as default. Researchers observed harmful design patterns in all tested regions (US, UK, India, Germany), confirming that Microsoft still steers users toward Edge and blocks free browser choice across the operating system.

Both findings highlight ongoing security and competition concerns for the roughly 1.4 billion Windows users worldwide.