Microsoft Is Silently Checking Your PC for Outdated Versions of Office

Credit: Microsoft

(Photo: Microsoft) If you’re one of the unwashed masses still using ancient versions of Microsoft Office, the company is about to find out about it. According to recent patch notes, Microsoft is pushing out a silent update that will analyze what version of Office is installed on your PC. It will send that info back to HQ; as the company states it just wants to know the number of users still rocking Office 2007, 2010, and 2013. Support for 2007 and 2010 ended ages ago, but 2013 is due to be sent into the cornfields in April 2023.

The “update” is listed as a Jan. 17 patch on Microsoft’s support site and was flagged by The Register. Its description reads, “This update is intended to help Microsoft identify the number of users running out-of-support (or soon to be out-of-support) versions of Office, including Office 2013, Office 2010, and Office 2007. This update will run one time silently without installing anything on the user’s device.” Microsoft says the update is safe, as it’s been scanned for viruses and stored on a secure server. You also won’t need to restart your computer afterward.

For some people, older versions of Office are still more than sufficient for typing text into a document or a spreadsheet.

Still, the lingering question is obvious: what is Microsoft going to do with this information? We don’t have the answer, as the company isn’t providing it. Also, what information is it gathering in addition to the version of Office you’re running, if any? Again, Microsoft doesn’t state it explicitly, so we don’t know. It also doesn’t indicate if it will leave anything on your machine after it’s done its due diligence either.

Obviously, Microsoft wants its customers to use the latest version of its software. There’s a profit motive there, but also a security concern. Once products are no longer supported, they will remain vulnerable for all of eternity. A cursory search for vulnerabilities in these older versions of Office turned up a long list of potential issues. Still, it’s also not hard to imagine Microsoft using this information to make an easy upsell. It was previously reported that Microsoft was testing ads for its own products in the Windows 11 sign-out menu.

It’s not hard to imagine a pop-up ad or something integrating into Windows admonishing you for using older software. Of course, there would be a handy link to acquire the latest version for a tidy fee. If you are not comfortable with this silent update, you can always use Microsoft’s troubleshooting tool for updates. It lets you “show or hide” updates, though it’s not recommended you prevent Windows from updating. You can download the file right here, but use it at your own risk.

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