VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese computer users still prefer Windows XP to Windows 8, though they have been warned that their computers are at a high risk of being hacked.

Microsoft Vietnam’s CEO Vu Minh Tri said once Microsoft ends its support of Windows XP on April 8, it will no longer provide automatic fixes, updates, or online technical assistance. Without Microsoft support, users will no longer receive security updates that can help protect their PCs from harmful viruses, spyware, and other malicious software that can steal personal information.

However, the warning has been neglected.

“We have informed businesses and individual users about the end of support. We have committed to assist businesses to switch to new operating systems such as Windows 7 or Windows 8. However, the switching process has been going very slowly,” Tri said.

According to Tri, about 5.5 million computers in Vietnam are still using the 11-year-old operating system, which accounts for 45.8 percent of the operating system market. The users are mostly businesses.

“We had worked with many businesses before halting Windows XP support. Most of them were hesitant to switch to new operating systems because they were not aware of the possible risks,” Tri noted.

In Vietnam, experts noted that the majority of individual users are not updating their computers with other Windows versions, partially because Windows XP has become so familiar to them, or because some of their apps can run only on Windows XP.

On some information technology (IT) forums, members are advising others that if they plan on continuing their use of Windows XP, they should “say goodbye” to Internet Explorer (IE) and select another browser instead, to ensure their security. IE8 is considered an out-of-date browser with no new features and efficiency improvement. It also will not be supported by Microsoft’s automatic fixes after April 8.

Computer users have been told that in case they still plan to use Windows XP, they should try Firefox or Chrome. Google said it would continue supporting Chrome for Windows XP until April 2015. Meanwhile, Mozilla said it does not intend to stop supporting Windows XP users.

In fact, it is not only Vietnamese who turn deaf ears to Microsoft’s warnings. A report revealed that the Windows XP market share in the US actually increased by 0.25 percent in January, to 29 percent. This means that one out of every three computers there still runs on Windows XP.

Vietnamese state management agencies have not made any official announcements about the government’s program to help businesses switch to other operating systems.

The HCM City Education and Training Department on April 3 released its decision that schools and training establishments must not use Windows XP and Microsoft Office 2003 software to compile and store confidential documents.

The department has also asked schools’ teachers and workers not to connect their personal smart devices to the inner networks, and not to bring the smart devices with them when attending important conferences.

The latest decision has caused consternation among many teachers, who use tablets and smart phones in teaching. If they cannot connect to the schools’ wireless networks, they will not be able to download or share information.

K. Chi