According to Google, starting February 2023 the Chrome browser will stop supporting Windows 7 and 8.1.
The company says that once support for these two versions of Windows ends, Chrome users will need to have at least Windows 10 on devices to receive updates to the browser.
See also: Google improves Chrome for Android tablets
Google Chrome 's Support Manager reveals that with the release of Chrome 110 (tentatively scheduled for February 7, 2023), support for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 will officially end.
“If you want to continue receiving new Chrome updates, make sure device is running Windows 10 or later.“.
Google's decision to end support for these platforms aligns with 's Windows lifecycle policy Microsoft, which ends the Extended Security Update (ESU) program for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 in January 2023.
Statistics show that 10% of all Windows systems still use Windows 7, while Windows 8.1 is found at 2.7%.
See also: Google announces Chromebook cloud gaming laptops
Google Chrome is the most popular browser , with a market share of over 65%. Safari browser comes in second, with around 18%, and Microsoft Edge is third with 4.32% (using the Chrome rendering engine with improvements from Microsoft).
The Google Chrome browser was first released in 2008 for Microsoft Windows, built with software components from Apple WebKit and Mozilla Firefox. It was later ported to Linux, macOS, iOS, and Android.
Users are advised to upgrade to the latest version
Although users can use older versions of Google Chrome even after support for Windows 7 and 8.1 ends, Google recommends that they upgrade their systems to continue receiving security updates.
This also aligns with Microsoft's advice for systems running versions of Windows that are no longer supported. These versions no longer receive updates and leave computers and data vulnerable to security.
See also: Google: Deactivating Chrome Manifest V2 extensions in June 2023
The Google employee said: “Older versions of Chrome will continue to work, but users of those operating systems will not receive any further updates.”
"We strongly encourage Windows 7 and 8.1 users to upgrade to a supported version of Windows before the end of support date in order to continue receiving essential security and Chrome features," he concluded.
Getting security updates on Google Chrome is extremely important. Recently, a report revealed that Google's browser was the most vulnerable browser available, after a large number of vulnerabilities.
Source: www.bleepingcomputer.com
