Windows 10 Upgrade For Pirates: Applies Worldwide

Last week Microsoft confirmed it will give users running pirated copies of Windows 7 and 8.1 a free upgrade to Windows 10. Now it's revealed that offer has a big restriction, one that may undermine the entire purpose of the move.

Windows 10 Upgrade For All Applies Worldwide

The initial announcement appeared as if the piracy offer would only apply to users in China. Since then, however, Microsoft has made some clarified two main points.

One is that the offer will apply worldwide, and not just in China. The move was controversial enough in piracy-ridden China, and even more so in countries where piracy is not the norm. The other big catch is that even though Microsoft is allowing the Windows 10 upgrade to pirates, their resulting copy of Windows 10 will not be considered a genuine licensed installation. (Source: arstechnica.com)

Current Pirated Windows Users Will Still See Nag Screens

That means many of Microsoft's existing anti-piracy measures will still be in effect after the upgrade, including: repeated on-screen messages urging the user to pay for a license, and the desktop turning black after 60 minutes. Such measures are designed to be irritating and potentially embarrassing if the user is in a public place or shared office, but don't dramatically affect usability of the operating system.

It's also very possible people who run an unlicensed version of Windows 10 will receive only limited system updates. This may include receiving security patches only for critical vulnerabilities, but not feature updates. (Source: betanews.com)

The big risk with this strategy is that, rather than persuade users to pay for Windows 10, it might instead spur them to seek out illegal copies of the new system that have been altered to remove the anti-piracy measures. That could mean users will continue to visit piracy-related sites that could house security threats.

Microsoft could also eventually try to block the unlicensed copies of Windows 10 from working at all. The problem is that could prompt users to look for ways of blocking communication between their PC and Microsoft, which would then prevent them from receiving security updates of any kind. That in turn increases the risk of their PC getting and passing on a virus or other security threat to other PCs on the Internet or local area network.

What's Your Opinion?

Has Microsoft adopted the right balance between getting people to upgrade to Windows 10 and avoiding 'rewarding' piracy? Do you think Microsoft planned this all along or did it backtrack on the idea of giving users of knock-off systems a no-strings-attached upgrade? Are there more effective ways Microsoft could combat piracy?