44 Unsupported Software

Nothing lasts forever, especially the support of a software application by a developer or vendor. Now generally, that doesn’t mean that the software stops working altogether, or is degraded in any obvious way, instead the issue is that security flaws in both the software application itself and any libraries and resources it uses may build up over time. Actually, the flaws were probably always there, but no one really knew about them, and once the security flaws become public knowledge, criminals mobilise to capitalise on them.

Generally, software applications are supported for around 3-5 years if paid for, while freeware support may be shorter, upgrading is not an issue as there is no cost. If the developer stops altogether, then it is best to find an alternative, where possible. The biggest area of concern though with unsupported software are web browsers, due the high number of users that easily runs into the millions. Using an old unsupported web browser is much worse than say using an unsupported image editing app, because if you are tricked into visiting a compromised website, automated scripts could utilise a known flaw or vulnerability in that web browser.

Even Microsoft has announced that its built-in web browser in Windows, Internet Explorer (IE) version 11 stopped receiving support on the 15th June 2022. Unfortunately, every month there seems to be various online services announcing that they have stopped supporting Internet Explorer. Even Microsoft's own Teams service had a degraded experience (or did not work at all) after the 30th Nov 2020 on Internet Explorer. For Windows 10 users, unless you have a business need for IE 11, I advise you remove it by going to Settings – Apps – Apps & features.

Then select Optional Features – Internet Explorer 11 and click Uninstall. It is important to remove Internet Explorer because even though you may never use it as a web browser, the fact it is present in Microsoft Windows is enough to be a security risk.

Don’t worry if you cannot see Internet Explorer 11, as Microsoft ended support for Internet Explorer on 15th June 2022, permanently disabling it through a Microsoft Edge update for certain versions of Windows 10. For websites that need Internet Explorer 11, you can use Internet Explorer mode in Microsoft Edge.

If you can, remove any unsupported software that you do not use or have no requirements for, especially trial software and software that you only installed out of curiosity. Before you remove any paid for software though, please save serial numbers, install codes and any installation files, so that you have the option to reinstall the software if you need to at a later date.

A useful online resource is https://endoflife.date/ which lists the end-of-life (EOL) and support information for over 342 products, including desktop applications, operating systems, databases, mobile devices, frameworks, and more.

Index or next chapter In Conclusion

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