End of XP support and online banking

hansi

I run Windows XP and support and updates and support end in March. I have a very good AV programme and Trusteer Rapport. I am loath to change my OS as most of my software will not work with Windows 8 especially Quicken. Will it still be safe to use XP?

macman

No OS is 100% safe. Yes it will, though it will become increasingly vulnerable and buggy with no new updates being issued after April.
If XP is that obsolete, why would the UK Border Agency at Heathrow still be using it? At least they were when I passed through Heathrow a week ago...
I'd be more concerned about having spyware like Rapport installed.

Uxb

Change to win 7 instead - its still available?

As to the answer to your question - it is impossible to reply: who knows what exploits and loopholes may be discovered in XP in the near future.
It depends on how your computer is used and by whom as to how risky it is to continue to use XP. If it is just used by you as sole occupant of the house and no home network that is a much lower risk profile than a family computer used by everyone to visit who knows what sites on the web.

I suspect many will still use XP.
The real end for it will come when the AV vendors all stop supporting it.

Uxb

macman wrote: »

If XP is that obsolete, why would the UK Border Agency at Heathrow still be using it? At least they were when I passed through Heathrow a week ago...
I'd be more concerned about having spyware like Rapport installed.

Agree with you on Rapport.
The risk in XP is when it is connected to the open internet
I'd suspect that UK borders machines will be operating on a tightly closed company network.
Likewise many cash ATM's run XP

sparky0138

There are still computers/laptops being sold with Windows 7 in them for those who don't want Windows 8. Try the companies where you pick and choose your own components. I can recommend Chillblast. I've had 2 PC's from them in the past (both Windows 7) and would definitely buy from them again. They have good reviews on TrustPilot too.

robatwork

Next time you're in a petrol station or medium sized chain store, try to find out what OS they are using.

You would be surprised. And also with what PCI compliance does and doesn't require. Not to mention what versions of OS the chip & pin companies support.

Hominu

Considering XP was released in 2001, that makes it at least 12 years old.

If you are using it on the open internet its time to chuck it out and upgrade to something newer. You need not go directly to Windows 8. You can try Windows 7 with a Windows XP skin if you really long for the same interface but with current security updates.

If you are using it offline or on a secure network, then there's no need to update until you want to. We still have machines that run it at work, but these are only capable of running approved software and have no access to the internet, only a LAN sub-net.

InsideInsurance

macman wrote: »

No OS is 100% safe. Yes it will, though it will become increasingly vulnerable and buggy with no new updates being issued after April.
If XP is that obsolete, why would the UK Border Agency at Heathrow still be using it? .

It wont become more vulnerable or buggy, its code isnt going to change. The difference is that when bugs or vulnerabilities are found the MS will no longer fix them.

Many companies use XP, my current client is about to switch to Windows 7 but to do the full company is estimated to take 2 years. UKBA are a smaller organisation but I imagine have a lot of bespoke software which makes moving OSs even more challenging.

4 years ago a former client (a bank) was still using NT4 in its asset management division.

robatwork

We only upgraded our last DOS client about 2 years ago, and still have a couple on Win 98.


True believers in "if it ain't broke......"

TrustyOven

Uxb wrote: »

Likewise many cash ATM's run XP

Maybe because the operators are stupid / ignorant of the security issues / have no time or money to upgrade / found it too complex to upgrade all the ATMs / have not found a good enough upgrade (ie. Windows 7/8 are not good enough) ?

MPH80

I'd point out that there are companies still operating mainframes from the 1980s. They are secure because the company spends the resources on making them secure. Doesn't make it suitable for a home computer.

Most ATMs are actually running Windows XP Embedded - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Embedded_POSReady - notably the POS version was only really based on XP as of 2009. The Win 7 version has only been around since 2011 and the Win 8 version for about a year. Not a surprise we're not seeing much movement.

The truth of the matter is that once support ends - critical vulnerabilities won't be patched. Websites will gradually stop supporting XP (you have to enable certain ciphers/protocols to remain XP compatible for example). Checkout the SSL labs report on gmail for example: https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/analyze.html?d=gmail.com&s=74.125.227.181

Is it dead and buried? no.

Should any of us consider it secure? no.

Is Windows 8 more secure than XP? Yes. It has ASLR and DEP (both introduced in Windows 7) which help - it also means you can get up onto IE11.