Microsoft will release the last set of security updates for Windows 7 on January 14, so next week, the 2009 operating system will officially be given an “unsupported” badge.
And while the risks of running outdated software are obvious, users sticking with Windows 7 won’t have to worry about the lack of updates for their browser. At least if they use Google Chrome.
The Mountain View-based search giant announced this week that Google Chrome for Windows 7 will be supported until at least July 15, 2021, so users have 18 more months to complete the migration to a support platform.
“If you haven’t started your move to Windows 10 yet, or even if your organization is mid-way through migration, you can still benefit from the enterprise capabilities of Chrome,” Max Christoff, Engineering Director, Chrome, says.
“On Windows 7, Chrome will continue to provide built-in security capabilities that help keep users safe while on the web.”
Other browsers likely to follow
Google then goes on to explain that the feature arsenal will remain unchanged on Windows 7 despite the end of support, but also to emphasize that users can easily switch from one device to another thanks to Chrome’s support for picking up from where they left off across Windows versions.
“Because your employees are already familiar with browsing in Chrome, they’ll experience less disruption once they do move to working in Windows 10. Even beyond Windows environments, employees can be productive on Chrome across different desktop and mobile platforms, without interruption,” Christoff notes.
Google Chrome is unlikely to be the only browser still getting updates on Windows 7 after the end of support is reached. Most likely, Mozilla will announce similar plans for Firefox, and so will the makers of other browsers, including here Opera and Vivaldi.
https://news.softpedia.com/news/google-chrome-for-windows-7-will-continue-to-get-updates-until-july-2021-528814.shtml