Is your office using old versions of Windows? You may be at risk!
According to experts interviewed by software developer and tech industry network Spiceworks, many businesses can expect to face significant challenges if they don’t boost their IT budgets.
Using data pulled from online discussions on the Spiceworks website, real-time stats from the company’s Windows-based IT management platform, and a survey of over 800 veterans of the IT industry, the company has concluded that the majority of businesses are woefully behind on updating their Windows operating systems and programs, which could lead to expensive and time-consuming issues down the line. One of the examples cited by the survey is the variety of security risks associated with relying on “dead” software such as Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP (which more than 60% of companies polled currently still use).
An Issue for Small Businesses
Researchers stated that while management at most businesses is focused on keeping costs low, they are ignoring the looming IT budget which will be required to deal with issues relating to supporting and troubleshooting outdated software and programs.
This is commonplace for small businesses, especially, and was reflected in their findings, which broke down the following ways:
- Businesses with fewer than 20 employees: 16%
- Businesses with between 50 – 99 employees: 20%
- Businesses with between 100 – 249 employees: 24%
- Enterprise businesses with over 100 employees: less than 8%
Key Findings:
Below are a few important takeaways from the survey – do any of these sound familiar? If so, it may be time to rethink your IT strategy:
Despite increasing revenue, IT budgets remain low.
According to Spiceworks, only 38% percent of North American companies are expecting to increase their IT budget in 2016, with larger companies being the most likely and smaller businesses being much less likely.
IT departments aren’t expected to grow.
This means that your IT professionals will be doing more with less, decreasing their ability to do their jobs effectively. Approximately 62% of companies surveyed responded that “IT security wasn’t a top priority in 2016”, meaning that many companies are at risk for viruses, hackers, malware, and more, and their IT staff will be stretched thin trying to handle it.
Tech end-of-life is expected to influence investment in IT.
So what does get companies thinking about investing in their IT? According to Spiceworks technology end-of-life (that is, software or programs which are actively being phased out and no longer supported by companies like Microsoft) topped the list of reasons to invest in IT in 2016.
“This speaks to the motto of many companies: ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,’” states the research.
Why does this matter to your business?
As software becomes less supported it becomes more prone to issues and more open for attacks and infiltration by viruses and malware, which means that even though your Windows XP PC may appear to be in perfect working condition, it may actually be a liability to your business. It’s important to continue to update your hardware with the latest updates in operating systems, virus protection, and other important upgrades.
At Corey’s Computing our team of PC experts are happy to help your business stay up-to-date and keep your privacy secure. Contact us or call the store at204-586-7953 for more information about how we can help.