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MICROSOFT SAYS FREE WINDOWS 10 UPGRADES FOR PIRATES WILL BE ‘NON-GENUINE’ AND
UNSUPPORTED, STAYS MUM ON SECURITY

Emil Protalinski@EPro
March 19, 2015 12:32 PM
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Image Credit: Jordan Novet / VentureBeat

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When Microsoft confirmed it will offer free Windows 10 upgrades to pirates
worldwide, many were shocked. VentureBeat has been trying to get more details
from the company, which disclosed today that after PCs with pirated copies of
Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 are upgraded to Windows 10, they will remain in a
“non-genuine” status and Microsoft will not support them.

“With Windows 10, although non-genuine PCs may be able to upgrade to Windows 10,
the upgrade will not change the genuine state of the license,” a Microsoft
spokesperson told VentureBeat. “Non-genuine Windows is not published by
Microsoft. It is not properly licensed or supported by Microsoft or a trusted
partner. If a device was considered non-genuine or mislicensed prior to the
upgrade, that device will continue to be considered non-genuine or mislicensed
after the upgrade. According to industry experts, use of pirated software,
including Non-genuine Windows, results in a higher risk of malware, fraud —
identity theft, credit card theft, etc. — public exposure of your personal
information, and a higher risk for poor performance or feature malfunctions.”

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Yet this doesn’t provide enough answers. After a pirate upgrades to Windows 10
for free, does this “non-genuine” version expire and become unusable after a
certain period of time? Does no support mean no security updates for pirates?

Microsoft declined to answer both these questions. The company did, however,
explain that it will have a system in place to get these pirates to address
their “non-genuine” status.

“We will provide a mechanism for non-genuine Windows 10 PC devices to ‘get
genuine’ via the new Windows Store, whether they are upgraded versions of
Windows or purchased,” a Microsoft spokesperson told VentureBeat. “We will have
details on this as we get closer to launch.”

It’s worth looking at how existing Windows versions expire when they’re in
non-genuine status. The Genuine Windows FAQ says the following happens after 30
days:

> Until you correct the issue, you’ll receive periodic reminders that Windows is
> not genuine. In addition, to more clearly display these messages, your desktop
> might turn black. You can reset it, but every 60 minutes, it will return to
> black until the issue is resolved.

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This is called Reduced Functional mode, and it basically means your computer
turns off every hour. Microsoft will, however, let you squeeze in security
updates during this limited time frame:

> Regardless of genuine status, you’ll still be able to get critical security
> updates. However, if your copy of Windows isn’t genuine, you won’t be able to
> install many updates that are exclusively for genuine Windows customers,
> including Microsoft Security Essentials. Microsoft strongly recommends that
> you get genuine Microsoft software immediately to help ensure a safer
> computing experience.

In short, Windows eventually becomes unusable (unless you are perfectly happy
with using your computer in less than 60 minute increments), though it will
continue to get security updates. This only applies to the latest versions of
Microsoft’s operating system (Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8.x).

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Windows 10 could end up behaving differently in terms of expiry and security
updates. Microsoft has experimented with various solutions over the years, and
while the company is clearly interested in a different approach, it isn’t yet
ready to share everything.

The direction Microsoft chooses to go will not just affect its bottom line and
pirates but other Windows 10 users as well. Getting more users onto the latest
operating system is great, but it’s useless if they’re not getting security
updates. This is something Microsoft has struggled with for years, and the
company underlines the problems at the end of the first statement above: “Use of
pirated software, including non-genuine Windows, results in a higher risk of
malware, fraud  — identity theft, credit card theft, etc. — public exposure of
your personal information, and a higher risk for poor performance or feature
malfunctions.”

Piracy hurts the Windows ecosystem as a whole. Yet the decision is not a simple
one.

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If Microsoft gives pirates a free upgrade with no strings attached, like it is
doing for genuine Windows 7 and Windows 8.x users, it will likely face some
backlash from paying customers. But if Microsoft locks pirates out of a critical
part of Windows 10, they will simply revert to circumventing the “non-genuine”
status, just like with previous versions of Windows.

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