微软在本月14日起停止为窗口操作系统Windows7提供免费安全更新，意味着安装该系统的电脑，将更容易受到恶意软件和黑客的攻击。根据微软官方网站信息，对Win7等系统终止支持后，用户电脑仍然可以继续工作，但是微软官方将不再提供任何问题的技术支持、软件更新、安全更新或修复等服务。

微软公司标志和办公楼（图片来源：新华社）

Cyber-security experts are urging Windows 7 users to upgrade their operating system.

网络安全专家敦促Windows 7用户升级操作系统。

Microsoft is going to stop supporting Windows 7 from Tuesday so that it can focus on "newer technologies".

微软将从周二（1月14日）开始停止支持Windows 7，以专注于“新技术”。

As a result, Windows 7 users will no longer receive the all-important security updates and patches that keep their machines safe.

因此，Windows 7用户将不再收到至关重要的用以确保计算机安全运行的安全更新和补丁。

all-important [ˌɔːl ɪmˈpɔːtnt]：adj.极重要的，至关紧要的

One in four Windows users is running Windows 7, according to statistics website StatCounter.

统计网站StatCounter的数据显示，四分之一的Windows用户正在使用Windows 7。

这意味着什么？

It means that Microsoft is ending the cat-and-mouse game with hackers seeking to exploit software bugs in the Windows 7 operating system.

黑客们一直试图利用Windows 7操作系统中的软件漏洞用来攻击电脑，这意味着微软将结束与黑客之间这场猫捉老鼠的游戏。

If perpetrators find a flaw in Windows 7, Microsoft will not fix it.

如果侵入者发现了Windows 7的一个漏洞，微软不会再对其进行修复。

Without continued software and security updates, Windows 7 machines are more likely to be infected with viruses and malware, Microsoft wrote on its website.

微软在其官网写道，如果没有持续的软件和安全更新，安装Windows 7操作系统的电脑更有可能感染病毒或被植入恶意软件。

malware [ˈmælweə(r)]：n.恶意软件

"Running an unpatched machine means that the flaws in the code will never be fixed and as exploits for those flaws become known and widespread, your chances of being successfully attacked grow very rapidly," said Rik Ferguson, vice-president of security research at Trend Micro.

趋势科技负责安全研究的副总裁里克•弗格森说：“运行一台未打补丁的电脑意味着，代码中的漏洞将永远无法修复。随着利用这些漏洞的行为变得众所周知并广为传播，电脑遭到攻击的几率将迅速上升。”

David Emm, a senior security researcher at Kaspersky Lab, added that people need to move to a supported operating system as soon as possible.

卡巴斯基实验室的高级安全研究员戴维·埃姆补充说，人们需要尽快改装受支持的操作系统。

有哪些风险？

Hackers use malware to invade, damage or disable computers.

黑客使用恶意软件入侵、破坏或使电脑无法使用。

It can be used to steal personal and financial data, spy on other users without them knowing, and to hold companies to ransom until a payment is made.

它可以被用来窃取个人和财务数据，在其他用户不知情的情况下监视他们，还可以用来向公司勒索赎金。

In May 2017, the NHS was hit by the WannaCry ransomware attack.

2017年5月，英国国家医疗服务体系（NHS）遭受了“永恒之蓝”勒索软件攻击。

A government report in 2018 concluded that the attack could have been avoided if NHS Trusts had updated their computers and applied the necessary security patches.

2018年的一份政府报告得出结论，如果NHS信托机构更新了电脑并应用了必要的安全补丁，那次攻击本可以避免。

Hackers exploited weaknesses in unpatched versions of Windows 7, as well as to a lesser extent the earlier Windows XP, which Microsoft had stopped supporting.

黑客们利用了Windows 7未打补丁版本的弱点，也部分利用了微软已停止支持的较早版本Windows XP的弱点。

to a lesser extent：在较小程度上

该如何处理你的Windows 7电脑？

Computers running Windows 7 will still function after Tuesday but they will become less and less secure.

周二（1月14日）之后，使用Windows 7的电脑仍将正常运行，但安全性将越来越差。

Microsoft is urging people to move to Windows 10, a newer operating system that it sells for £120.

微软敦促人们改用Windows 10，这是一款更新的操作系统，售价120英镑（约合人民币1077元）。

"Going forward, the best way for you to stay secure is on Windows 10," it said. "And the best way to experience Windows 10 is on a new PC."

微软称：“今后，让电脑安全的最佳方式是安装Windows 10。体验Windows 10最好的方式是换一台新电脑。”

It is possible to install Windows 10 on old PCs but Microsoft warns that it may not run smoothly.

用户可以在旧电脑上安装Windows 10，但微软警告说，它可能运行得不顺畅。

In order to run Windows 10, PCs must have a 1GHz processor, 16GB of hard drive space, and 1GB of RAM memory.

要运行Windows 10，个人电脑必须拥有1GHz处理器、16GB硬盘空间和1GB内存。

"While it is possible to install Windows 10 on your older device, it is not recommended," Microsoft said.

微软表示：“虽然可以在旧电脑上安装Windows 10，但不建议这么做。”

That said, Windows 7 users do not need to upgrade if they use their PC offline.

虽然如此，如果Windows 7用户离线使用电脑，就不需要升级。

对企业有何影响？

Some companies rely heavily on applications that only work with Windows 7.

一些公司严重依赖只能在Windows 7上运行的应用程序。

Businesses can pay Microsoft if they want to continue getting updates for Windows 7 Professional or Windows 7 Enterprise.

如果企业想继续升级Windows 7专业版或Windows 7企业版，可以向微软付费。

The Windows 7 Extended Security Updates will be available until 2023 for businesses of all sizes.

所有规模的企业都可以使用Windows 7扩展安全更新到2023年。

Charges range from $25 per device to $200 per device and increase each year. The costs will mount quickly for organisations with lots of computers.

每台电脑的收费从25美元到200美元不等，并逐年增加。对于拥有大量电脑的机构来说，成本将迅速上升。

For businesses, it is not always easy to upgrade to a newer operating system, Mr Ferguson said.

弗格森表示，对于企业而言，升级到更新的操作系统并不总是那么容易。

"There may be business-critical applications that will not run on newer operating systems, or there may be significant costs associated with upgrading those applications," he said.

他说：“可能有一些对业务至关重要的应用程序不能在新的操作系统上运行，或者升级这些应用程序可能会带来巨大的成本。”

Places like hospitals and factories may have equipment that is designed to run exclusively on Windows 7.

医院和工厂等地可能有专门设计用于运行Windows 7操作系统的电脑。