These days, every electronic device that you own gets updates, otherwise known as ‘patches’.
Patches used to be something that crept into your computer to cover embarrassing ‘holes’ left by the developers and nobody usually knew about these holes except the developers lab and/or any people keen enough to look further into the software.
Now with the advent of social media, we have companies (i.e. Microsoft) who have even got us looking forward to their release of patches with what’s become known as ‘Patch Tuesday’.
So what are these patches and what do they do for your devices?
More often than not, your patch is covering a ‘hole’ or ‘bug’ in the software on your device. Just like back in the old days when you went bum over teakettle and ripped the knee out of your jeans, good ole Mum came to the rescue with a patch!
Today’s patches, whilst not like the dodgy square of material from yesteryear, still do require your respect and attention, to make sure that they are applied in a timely fashion.
Why is this?
Well, to put it quite bluntly, if you don’t patch your software, you run the risk of leaving a ‘hole’ open in the software that can be compromised. This can lead to malware attacks, data theft, and even make your computer unstable.
If you’ve been reading the news lately you’ll see that Microsoft is ‘retiring’ Windows XP and Office 2003. This means that they will no longer provide ‘patches’ or ‘updates’ for this software after April 2014 and that if you want your system to be secure, you’ll need to upgrade.
Of course, they normally do provide an upgrade path for users of the older software, so that it won’t cost you an arm and a leg.
If your devices are nagging you to do updates, don’t put them off as they are there for a reason!
Have you had any bad software updates? Share your experience with us below.
