Windows 10 has been something of a punching bag in recent times despite Microsoft making desperately needed changes to its upgrade system. But now Microsoft has issued an important new upgrade warning everyone needs to know about.
First spotted by Windows Latest, Microsoft has issued a warning to users that its new security update (CVE-2019-2102) will “intentionally” break certain Bluetooth devices, including crucial hardware like security fobs forcing them to upgrade. Microsoft states it will push this update to all versions of Windows 10 as well as Windows 8.1. so there's no escaping it.
“You may experience issues pairing, connecting or using certain Bluetooth devices after installing security updates released June 11, 2019,” the company states. “These security updates address a security vulnerability by intentionally preventing connections from Windows to unsecure Bluetooth devices. Any device using well-known keys to encrypt connections may be affected, including certain security fobs.”
Microsoft remains vague about how it defines “well-known keys”, but the long and short of it is the company’s honourable intentions have been damaged by its failure to give any sort of advance notice. And now users risk finding their headphones, headsets, keyboards, mice or even their company security fob may suddenly stop working.
How will you know if you’re going to be affected by this? Only when your device(s) stop pairing. As for solutions, Microsoft tells all affected users to “contact the manufacturer of your Bluetooth device to determine if a device update [exists].” If it doesn’t, congratulations, it's time to upgrade your because your device is now obsolete.
Make no mistake, Windows 10 security is very important but so is giving users ample time to prepare for changes which may impact their productivity and cost them money. In April, Microsoft promised to give Windows 10 users more "control, quality and transparency" over software updates. But it has already fallen short here.
The honourable intentions behind the change means we can’t group it with howlers like the Windows 10 bugs which deleted your personal data, made Windows 10 downgrade itself, broke app updates, crippled gaming performance or made Chromium browsers up to 4x slower. That said, it’s still not a good look and it's unlikely to inspire the hundreds of millions of users still running Windows 7 to take the plunge with Windows 10.
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