Windows XP users: Your last supported refuge in Firefox ends in 2018, says Mozilla
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Firefox-maker Mozilla is finally pulling the plug on support for Windows XP and Vista, removing the last remaining supported browser for the old operating systems.
Firefox 52, released earlier this year, was the last fully supported version of the browser for XP and Vista. In March, Mozilla moved these users across to the Firefox extended support release (ESR) version, which only provides security updates.
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The non-profit says Firefox for XP and Vista will reach "final end of life" in June 2018.
"As one of the few browsers that continues to support Windows XP and Vista, Firefox users on these platforms can expect security updates until that date. Users do not need to take additional action to receive those updates," Mozilla says.
The date is actually a generous extension of the timeframe Mozilla was looking at last December, when it flagged the upcoming move to ESR, and said XP and Vista users could expect security updates until September 2017.
With the exception of an emergency patch for Windows XP this year in response to WannaCry, Microsoft stopped patching it in 2014.
Although Mozilla will continue patching Firefox for XP ad Vista, it is strongly urging users to move on to a supported version of Windows for security reasons.
Mozilla and Google continued to support XP well after its official end-of-life due to a significant number of machines still running it.
Google finally dropped Chrome support for Windows XP last April in Chrome 50 after extending a planned cut-off date in 2015 due to the then "millions" of people still using XP.
The OS still runs on about five percent of the world's desktops, according to Net Marketshare figures.
June 2018 is a generous extension for Windows XP and Vista users of the timeframe Mozilla was looking at last December.
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