Khaberni - Microsoft has issued an urgent warning to its product users that they must update their applications before implementing a major change in operating systems and technical support, emphasizing that delay in updates may expose users to serious security risks that could lead to bank account breaches and theft of personal data.
The company also warned that "Microsoft Office 2016" and "Office 2019" will stop receiving any security updates or bug fixes starting from next Tuesday, meaning that technical support for these old versions will no longer be available after this date.
The affected applications include "Word", "Excel", "Outlook", "PowerPoint", "Access", "Publisher", "Skype for Business", "OneNote", and other applications included in the "Office" suite.
Jeremy Carlson, Marketing Director at "Microsoft 365", explained that continuing to use old software after the official support period ends makes devices susceptible to hacking and data loss, noting that security vulnerabilities in these versions can be easily exploited by hackers.
He added in a post on the Microsoft Community Forum: "Using software after support period ends exposes devices to potential security risks, productivity losses, and compliance issues."
Carlson emphasized that now is the best time to move to the newer versions of "Microsoft Office", urging users to update their applications as soon as possible to avoid any future threats, adding: "Now is the right time to transition all devices running Office 2016 or 2019 to a officially supported version."
This warning comes days after a technical glitch affected users of the "Microsoft Teams" service within "Microsoft 365", prompting the company to conduct an urgent investigation into the causes of the malfunction that temporarily disrupted the service for some users around the world.
Microsoft concluded its warning by emphasizing that ignoring updates could lead to dire consequences, especially with the increase in cyberattacks targeting vulnerabilities in old software, urging all users to ensure that their devices are operating on the latest versions to ensure the security of their data and bank accounts.
