The end of Windows XP support could hurt ATM's

8 News Now ^ | 4-7-14 | Scott Daniels

[smokingfrog]

One in every three computers users could be in major trouble Tuesday, and they won't be getting any help.

Microsoft is dropping its support of its operating system Windows XP. This means there will be no security updates to fend off hackers.

The news gets worse. According to a CNN-Money report, 95 percent of all ATM's use Windows XP, which ATM's can be a prime target for hackers.

Banking giant JP Morgan bought a one-year extension of service so Chase Banks could still run Windows XP in their ATM's and still be covered. All of the big banks should be fine.

However, stand-alone ATM's often found at a gas stations, for instance, could be at risk. Microsoft announced the change years ago and still most banks have yet to upgrade their systems.

"Should a breach occur within an XP environment, they simply won't be of any support to the institution," Linda Montgomery, with the Learning Center, said.

Unless it has a bank or credit union's name on it, security experts say be cautious.

[Secret Agent Man]

the world ai’t gonna end for xp pc’s unless microsoft has written code to screw them up once support ends.

remember that last set of xp patches you downloaded......? planned obsolescence.

[I cannot think of a name]

“remember that last set of xp patches you downloaded”

I wonder if that's how my ‘automatic updates’ accidentally got turned off a couple of years ago?

[BeadCounter]

Bookmarked, I’m concerned about this, don’t have much to ad, I will probably go to our used computer store if I run into trouble.

[Spunky]

Ping for later read.

[Darksheare]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3141916/posts?page=1

Related maybe?
Dunno.

[bigbob]

A knowledgeable FReeper pointed out tha ATMs are never connected to the public internet. Some other POS systems using XP Embedded could well be vulnerable, however.

[Yo-Yo]

One would hope that ATMs are on a private network not subject fo public hacking.

[Paladin2]

I have one computer updated to the day, but most XP units are “stuck” at SP2.

[bigbob]

They are??

[plain talk]

ping for later read

[Rightwing Conspiratr1]

Less than ten years ago, 90% of ATMs ran IBM’s OS/2, which wasn’t supported at the time either.

[andyk]

Yep. Even in places where there is internet, I’ve never heard of one that didn’t have its own line (or share with business phone / fax).

[ElkGroveDan]

This is a lot of hype. Microsoft automatically applies patches as holes or weaknesses are discovered that hackers have been exploiting. BUT that doesn't mean there's going to be a problem they day after they stop offering automatic patches. Most of these hacks are convoluted anyway, requiring a specific series of circumstances, i.e., if you are watching a video, and your memory spikes crashing your video player and you hit a certain kind of infected web site immediately after your memory overload but before rebooting your system, then your computer is vulnerable to hacking the next time you download an Excel file (or something like that - this is an example only).

The point is, it's probably a good idea to upgrade your OS and or system if you are running XP because over time you could expose yourself to risks, but nothing is going to happen the day the support expires.

[Internet Walnut]

I Installed Linux Ubuntu.

[ansel12]

Why?

[Thorliveshere]

Bah! Obama wanted to replace them with bank tellers, anyway.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Here's an idea:

RUN WINDOWS 7 INSTEAD!!!

So endeth the lesson, cheapskates.

[I cannot think of a name]

Keep off porno and file sharing sites, don’t open any e-mail unless I know exactly who it is from, strong anti-virus (Norton works best but is a hog.) Been on the web since 1993 and never had a problem.

[Paladin2]

I think there are DRM differences.