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“Legacy Systems, Modern Threats”: Managing End‐of‐Life Exposure

October 15, 2025

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Windows 10 End-of-Life Leaves Permanent Vulnerabilities

After October 14, 2025, Windows 10 will no longer receive security updates. Any vulnerabilities discovered afterward will remain unpatched — making legacy machines permanent soft targets.

Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEVs) Are Being Recycled

Threat actors are focusing on old CVEs that are on the CISA KEV list — many of which remain unpatched on legacy endpoints.

Patch Management Tools Often Miss Offline Legacy Devices

Devices like lab systems, factory terminals, or unmanaged laptops running Win10 are often invisible to patch dashboards, creating silent exposure zones.

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End-of-Life Software Breaks Compliance Posture

Using unsupported OS versions may violate SOC 2, ISO 27001, or customer agreements even if they’re technically “working.”

Extended Security Updates (ESU) Only Delay the Risk

Microsoft offers paid ESUs for Windows 10, but they cover limited CVEs and don’t patch third-party software, which remains a massive attack vector.

Legacy Systems as Lateral Movement Vectors

Outdated devices are frequently used as footholds. Once breached, attackers move laterally to modern infrastructure undetected due to weak logging.

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