Avast PC Trends Report 2019 Reveals Over Half of PC Software is Out-of-Date, Putting Users at Risk
Avasts PC Trends Report 2019 found that users are making themselves vulnerable to hackers by not implementing security patches and keeping outdated versions of popular applications on their PCs.
Avast (LSE: AVST), the global leader in digital security products, today
revealed that more than half (55%) of PC applications installed
worldwide are out-of-date, making PC users and their personal data
vulnerable to security risks. Avast’s PC Trends Report 2019 found that
users are making themselves vulnerable to hackers by not implementing
security patches and keeping outdated versions of popular applications
on their PCs. The applications where updates are most frequently
neglected include Adobe Shockwave (96%), VLC Media Player (94%) and
Skype (94%).
The report, which uses anonymized and aggregated data from 163 million
devices across the globe, also found that Windows 10 is now installed on
40% of all PCs globally, which is fast approaching the 43% share held by
Windows 7. However, almost one in six (15%) of all Windows 7 users and
one in ten (9%) of all Windows 10 users worldwide are running older and
no longer supported versions of their product, for example, the Windows
7 Release to Manufacturing version from 2009 or the Windows 10 Spring
Creators Update from early 2017. Running out-of-date operating systems
puts them at risk from vulnerabilities and other significant security
issues.
“Most of us replace our smartphone regularly, but the same cannot be
said for our PCs. With the average age of a PC now reaching six years
old, we need to be doing more to ensure our devices are not putting us
at unnecessary risk,” said Ondrej Vlcek, President, Avast. “With the
right amount of care, such as cleaning our hardware’s insides using
cleaners, optimization and security products, PCs will be safe and
reliable for even longer.”
More people than ever are opting for laptops, tablets, and 2-in-1 PCs
running Windows. Although desktops are in no way obsolete, 67% of users
are choosing laptops and tablets, letting them work, browse and stream
on-the-go and this trend is likely to continue into 2019. This shift to
mobile PCs is also reflected in the most installed applications. Google
Chrome jumped to the top of the list in 2018, increasing its share of
installs from 79% to 91% in the last 12 months.
Adobe Acrobat Reader (60%) came in as the second most popular, followed
by WinRAR (48%), Microsoft Office (45%), and Mozilla Firefox (42%).
Although the fourth most used application worldwide is Microsoft Office,
this is also one of the most out-of-date apps. Globally, 15% of users
still have the Enterprise 2007 version installed, even though Microsoft
no longer issues security patches or bugs fixes for that product.
The Report also outlines the most popular PC brands, CPUs, RAM size and
hard disks:
-
Top five PC brands: globally, the most widespread PC brands are
HP, Acer, Asus, Lenovo and Dell. -
Most CPUs are still dual-core, with 74% running on two physical
cores and only 20% own a quad-core system. -
RAM: the most popular RAM size is four GB, which is enough for
most day-to-day applications. -
HDD vs. SSD: only 15% of users own a fast SSD, the rest of
users remain on either HDD or a HDD/SSD combo solution.
The full Avast PC Trends Report 2019 can be downloaded for free here.
Methodology
The core data used in this report is collected through the Automatic
Software Updater feature, a functionality included in Avast and AVG
security software and consists of anonymized datasets from a total of
163 million devices. Using a combination of real-world data and global
statistics from Statista and other sources, this report is able to paint
a picture of the state of the PC in 2018.
Avast Cleanup helps users maintain their PCs to keep them running like
new for longer. For more information, please go to: https://www.avast.com/cleanup
About Avast
Avast (LSE: AVST) is the global leader in digital security products.
With over 400 million users online, Avast offers products under the
Avast and AVG brands that protect people from threats on the internet
and the evolving IoT threat landscape. The company’s threat detection
network is among the most advanced in the world, using machine learning
and artificial intelligence technologies to detect and stop threats in
real time. Avast digital security products for Mobile, PC or Mac are
top-ranked and certified by VB100, AV-Comparatives, AV-Test, OPSWAT,
ICSA Labs, West Coast Labs and others. Visit: www.avast.com.
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