From today only the newest Internet Explorer for each Windows version gets security fixes: version 11 on Windows 7, 8.1 and 10. Update every office computer, move plain Windows 8 to 8.1, and test your site in 11.

What changes today

From today, Microsoft supports only the newest version of Internet Explorer available for each version of Windows.

On Windows 7, 8.1 and 10, that means Internet Explorer 11. On Windows Vista it means Internet Explorer 9. Older versions on those systems stop receiving security fixes.

Plain Windows 8, the version before the free 8.1 update, loses support today as well. Computers still running it get no further security updates of any kind.

Websites will not stop working in older browsers this morning. What stops is the repair of newly found security holes, and that matters on the computers your business uses for banking, email and the website.

Why an unsupported browser matters

A browser is the part of a computer that deals with the most strangers. Every page it opens, and every advertisement on those pages, hands it code to run.

When a flaw turns up in a supported version, Microsoft fixes it in a regular update. In an unsupported version the flaw stays open, and the people looking for open flaws know exactly which versions to aim at.

Malicious advertisements on otherwise ordinary websites are a common route in. The person at the computer did nothing wrong except open the page in an old browser.

Installing another browser does not remove the risk on its own. The old Internet Explorer stays on the computer, and some programs and links still open in it.

The computers to check

The third is the usual reason an office falls behind. Years ago a bank, a supplier's ordering site or a piece of software said it needed a particular version, updates were held back, and nobody revisited the decision.

Finding the version

In Internet Explorer, open the gear menu, or the Help menu in older versions, and choose About Internet Explorer. The version number is the first thing shown.

For Windows itself, the System page in the Control Panel names the version. Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 are listed differently there, which is the distinction that matters today.

While you are there, open Windows Update and look at the date of the last installed update. A computer that has not updated in months has a bigger problem than its browser.

Moving each one up

On Windows 7, Internet Explorer 11 comes through Windows Update at no cost. On plain Windows 8, the free update to 8.1 is in the Windows Store.

Before updating, check anything that depends on the browser: the banking software, the supplier's ordering site, the booking or point-of-sale system. Most were updated long ago, and the supplier can confirm.

Internet Explorer 11 can also display an old site the way an earlier version would, through its compatibility settings. A single old site is rarely a good reason to stay on an unsupported browser.

A worked example

A German butcher in a suburban shopping centre makes its own sausages, smoked ham and cold cuts, and takes pre-orders for geese and roasts before Christmas and Easter.

It has two computers. The one behind the counter prints labels for the deli case; the one in the back office handles supplier orders, online banking, payroll and changes to the website.

The counter computer ran Windows 7 with Internet Explorer 9. Back when it was the only computer, a supplier's ordering site had asked for that version, and the newer one was hidden in Windows Update so nobody would install it.

The office computer came with Windows 8 in 2013. The free 8.1 update appeared in the Store, failed once for lack of disk space, and was never tried again.

The supplier's site had long since been rebuilt and worked fine in Internet Explorer 11, so the counter computer was updated. The office computer was cleared of old files, moved to 8.1, and checked to be sure updates were arriving.

Neither change took long. The decision to hold back had simply outlived its reason by several years.

The computer that runs the website

Whichever computer is used to log in to the website, the hosting account and the domain account should be the best maintained one in the business.

A browser with an open flaw on that machine puts the site at risk as well as the computer. Saved passwords, logged-in sessions and the website's admin pages are all within reach of whatever gets in.

Testing your own website

From today, version 11 is the only Internet Explorer worth testing new work against, alongside Edge, Chrome, Firefox, Safari and the main phones.

Visitors on older versions will not vanish overnight. Offices that hold updates back, and home computers that never update, will keep turning up in your analytics for a while.

The site does not have to look perfect for them. They should still be able to read the page, find the phone number and send the form, even if the layout falls back to something plainer.

Analytics shows which browser versions your own visitors use. If older versions are a sliver of the total, spend the budget elsewhere.

The counter-case

A computer that never browses the web, such as one that only runs a label printer or a till program, is far less exposed, though it should still be updated when someone next works on it.

Some offices genuinely depend on an old internal system that only runs in an earlier version. The answer there is to use that machine for that system and nothing else, with email and browsing done elsewhere.

Everything else should be on a supported version from today. Any computer that browses the web, reads email or logs in to anything needs one, even if staff mostly use another browser.

Today

  1. List every computer the business uses.
  2. Check the Internet Explorer version on each.
  3. Check which Windows version each one runs.
  4. Install Internet Explorer 11 where it is missing.
  5. Move plain Windows 8 machines to 8.1.
  6. Ask suppliers before holding anything back.
  7. Test your own site in Internet Explorer 11.

Step one is the one most offices skip. The till, the laptop in the van and the home computer that does the books are computers too, and they are the ones most often left behind.

The same kind of quiet deadline, for the website rather than the office, is covered in certificates signed with SHA-1 are no longer issued.

Frequently asked questions

Which Internet Explorer versions are still supported?

From today, only the newest for each Windows version: Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 7, 8.1 and 10, and Internet Explorer 9 on Windows Vista.

What happens to plain Windows 8?

It also stops getting updates today. The free update to Windows 8.1 through the Windows Store brings it back into support, along with Internet Explorer 11.

Will websites stop working in old versions?

No. Websites do not switch off. What stops is the repair of newly found security holes, which leaves those computers exposed whenever they browse the web.

How do I check the version?

In Internet Explorer, open the gear or Help menu and choose About Internet Explorer. The System page in the Control Panel shows which Windows version is installed.

What if a program needs an old version?

Ask the supplier first; most have updated. Internet Explorer 11's compatibility settings handle many old sites, and a machine truly tied to one should be used for nothing else.

Should my website still support old versions?

Test new work in Internet Explorer 11 and current browsers. For older versions, make sure visitors can still read pages, find your number and send the form.

West Coast Media Solutions Inc. provides web design, web development, hosting, digital marketing, and business consulting to organisations across Canada, drawing on more than twenty-five years in the field.

Office still running Internet Explorer 9?

Update it this week. Then send us your website address and we will test it in the browsers that matter now.

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