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Your PC May Have Security Risks from Old Loaded Software

By April 30, 2019No Comments6 min read
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How many times do you check on the old, outdated computer software that stays on your PC? Not many will give a positive answer. This is because of a simple reason that we are not used to looking after all the happenings that are going on our PC. Many will also state that they don’t have enough time for such activities as deleting outdated, redundant software takes time. But one should know this fact for sure that this doesn’t mean that you are wasting your time.

Risks

What if you know that having old loaded software can lead hackers to access all your private information easily? Adding to this, you not deleting them make it all the way easier for them as this software may be filled with bugs and malware, waiting to be activated. Let us understand this in a more simple way.  Old software uses old technology. This old technology is more vulnerable to the attacks of hackers. Consequently, it can drive out every bit of information from your computer. Therefore, it becomes absolutely necessary to delete software download which is not in use.

Software developers do not pay much attention to old software once the new versions come to market. They believe that customers will shift from the old versions to the new ones. But in doing so, they don’t tend to remove or uninstall the old versions. This makes the PC susceptible to cyber attacks. Apart from all these issues, there are many other problems that one faces due to old software. Few of them are listed below:

  • Incompatibility: The old software tends to become incompatible with new devices or hardware as new versions come in the market. This is because the new hardware is not optimized to work with the old software.
  • Poor Speed: Old software also slows down your performance and makes your system slow. This might add to the irritation. It may also result in system breakdown which may consequently lead to loss of your data.
  • Lack of Flexibility: Old software work on old technology. Resultantly, you don’t get to use all those features which might be available in the newer ones. You lack flexibility while working on the redundant software.
  • Third Party Risk: It becomes equally risky if someone is using third-party applications. These applications, when connected to your software in any manner, can easily affect your data.
  • Rise in Cost: The cost of old software gets higher as the software gets older. This is because old software needs more maintenance.
  • Decreases Efficiency: Old software decrease the efficiency of your employees and they struggle with the lags of outdated software. Whereas work can be done much faster when one is equipped with the latest software.

According to a recent report by Avast, about 55% of all installed programs on Windows are outdated. This software includes Java, Skype, VLC and many more. Adobe Shockwave is at the top if we speak about outdated software.

How to Upgrade Software

As mentioned above, updating software is a very time taking process. However, it is extremely necessary to do this process as well. It has its own set of advantages which easily out power all other disadvantages, the main advantage being the introduction of new features.

  • Compatibility Check: Check if the new software will be able to work with the existing software in your company before doing any upgrade. Therefore, do a proper compatibility check before replacing the old software with the new one.
  • Take Help: upgrading software can become a serious headache if the process of up gradation is complicated. In such situations take help from the software service providers. They are well-trained experts who can reduce your workload to a great extent.
  • Do proper Planning: You need to do proper planning before upgrading software. While some software is easy to upgrade, some take a lot of time and efforts. For such software, proper planning is necessary.
  • Use Trusted Sources: People don’t usually want to purchase new software. In order to save money, many download free software from unauthenticated sources. This may also result in cyber and malware attacks as they are often loaded with malware.

Advantages of Updated Softwares

There are plethoras of advantages of using updated software. You become free from all the risks and vulnerabilities that surround an old version. Few of the advantages are listed below:

  • Security: The primary benefit of updating software is security. Updated software is more secure and less prone to cyber attacks. Companies bring new updates in order to fix bugs and the previous shortcomings of the software.
  • Increased Efficiency: It is obvious that the upgraded software will be faster and more efficient. The speed increases and so does the flow of your work.
  • Compatibility: Compatibility with other software as well as hardware also increases when any software receives an update.
  • Increased Flexibility: Take an example of Adobe premier pro. The earlier versions had few features. But with new updates, more and more features were added and this increased the flexibility of work as well.
  • Less Cost: Updated software requires less cost compared to the outdated ones. The maintenance cost goes down. Moreover, productivity also increases.

We cannot live without outdated mobile phones, TV sets or even laptops. But when it comes to the software aspect, we generally don’t pay enough attention. What we do not understand is that this software plays the role of any system’s backbone.

  Contact us today to learn about Bleuwire™  services and solutions in how we can help your business.