Software

90 per cent of the UK's NHS is STILL relying on Windows XP

And a load of them say they'll keep using it in 2017


The NHS is still running Windows XP en masse, two and a half years after Microsoft stopped delivering bug fixes and security updates.

Nearly all of England NHS trusts – 90 per cent – continue to rely on PCs installed with Microsoft’s 15-year-old desktop operating system.

Just over half are still unsure as to when they will move to a replacement operating system.

Fourteen per cent reckoned they’d move to a new operating system by the end of this year, and 29 per cent reckoned the move would happen “some time” in 2017.

Windows XP is not receiving any security updates from Microsoft, meaning health service PCs are wide open to hackers and malware.

The data on the NHS' use of Windows XP comes courtesy of a Freedom of Information request from Citrix, which approached 63 NHS trusts and received responses from 42.

An FoI request from Citrix made in July 2014, three months after Microsoft’s deadline to move off Windows XP, had found 100 per cent of NHS trusts were dependent on the operating system.

The Reg first reported in early 2014 how vast sections of the UK public sector was set to miss Microsoft’s April 2014 kill date for XP.

The government had agreed a temporary framework support agreement with Microsoft which guaranteed delivery of special security patches for a year.

That agreement ended on April 14 2015 after it was decided not to go for a second year.

Individual government departments and agencies were free to sign their own extended support agreements with Microsoft. ®

Send us news
162 Comments

UK health department republishes £330M Palantir contract with fewer ██████

As Good Law Project considers response, ICO slams failure to comply with FoI request

EU antitrust cops probe Microsoft ties between Entra ID and 365 services

Google claims rival has made an 'art and science' out of licensing

INC Ransom claims responsibility for attack on NHS Scotland

Sensitive documents dumped on leak site amid claims of 3 TB of data stolen in total

Developers beware, Microsoft's domain shakeup is coming soon

If you don't pay attention, your lovely little Teams app will stop working

Microsoft says AI alliances are needed to compete with Google

Only the Chocolate Factory is 'vertically integrated' to win at 'every AI layer from chips to a thriving mobile app store'

Licensing labyrinth for Power Apps and Dynamics 365 must be clarified, warns expert

Rules still unclear for Microsoft users making potentially costly decisions on enterprise applications

Microsoft hits Inflection point, peels off top personnel to form AI division

FYI, FTC: Karén Simonyan, DeepMind co-founder Mustafa Suleyman absorbed rather than acquired

The end of classic Outlook for Windows is coming. Are you ready?

Microsoft prepares to replace an old faithful with something shiny, new, and lacking key features. Sound familiar?

Intel throws chips on the table, Microsoft plays the Copilot card in wild bet on AI PCs

Does anyone actually want one?

Microsoft gets new Windows boss as Start Menu man Parakhin 'to explore new roles'

More MS moves just a week after new AI unit and other changes announced

Microsoft promises Copilot will be a 'moneymaker' in the long term

Exec tells investors to 'temper' expectations as mission to convince customers of price tag continues

Microsoft license shuffle means Power Apps users could break the bank

New restrictions seem to usher users toward expensive Dynamics 365 subscriptions