Europe forces Microsoft into free extended support for Windows 10
Windows 10 is officially unsupported starting next month… sort of. Perhaps seeing the writing on the wall (which it wrote itself), Microsoft has given Windows 10 holdouts an extra year of security updates, but you’ll need to pay for it or do some busywork to qualify—unless you live in some European countries, which have called baloney on that.
The Euroconsumers group alerted Microsoft (PDF) that its requirement for users to either turn on Windows Backup with an associated Microsoft account, spend a bunch of Microsoft Rewards points, or pay $30 to access those extra security updates was probably in violation of the Digital Markets Act of 2022. This law forbids “gatekeeper” companies from limiting access to products or services based on conditions to other products from the same company.
In response, Microsoft says that it is “making updates to the enrollment process” for residents of the European Economic Area (most of western Europe, notably omitting the UK). Windows 10 users in the EEA won’t need to turn on Windows Backup, pay the fee, or redeem Rewards points to get security updates through October 14th, 2026. Microsoft confirmed a general change in policy to comply with local laws to Windows Central.
The rest of us will have to start stretching, because those hoops won’t jump through themselves. But Microsoft has already backtracked on its October 2025 ultimatum multiple times, perhaps wary of those half of all Windows users who haven’t upgraded to 11 yet.
The market is at a very different place from where it was when Windows 8 lost support, with plenty of people relying fully on smartphones for their digital lives (and plenty others not looking for an expensive new laptop). I wonder if Microsoft will get cold feet again a year from now.
