If you're not keen on upgrading to Windows 10 just yet, you might want to check your computer very thoroughly. Numerous reports have surfaced that several PCs running on Windows 7 and 8.1 have automatically installed the update without their users' knowledge or consent.
This is different from last month's Microsoft ruckus, when users noticed that their computers have downloaded the Windows 10 installer even without them making a reservation. As reported by The Inquirer, Microsoft said that they have included this option "just in case" users may want to upgrade. "For individuals who have chosen to receive automatic updates through Windows Update, we help upgradable devices get ready for Windows 10 by downloading the files they'll need if they decide to upgrade," the company said in a statement.
Now, in a series of mails sent to The Register, several users are complaining that the aggressive Windows 10 push has gone too far. Instead of the update being optional, users have noticed that their settings have mysteriously changed, pre-ticking the "install now" button.
"In the latest raft of MS updates, the 'optional' Windows 10 option on this Windows 7 PC was pre-ticked. Can that be right? If I hadn't noticed, it would have caused havoc here," complained a user.
Another frustrated reader recounted that he was using his Windows 7, as he normally would, when all of a sudden his screen turned blue and rebooted. He was then prompted to "find a solution" and an "Upgrade to Windows 10" suddenly popped up. "I wonder if this Blue Screen was/is a Microsoft-initiated one, deliberately pushing people to upgrade to Windows 10???" the reader asked.
Josh Mayfield, creator of the GWX Control Panel, a tool that gets rid of Windows 10 upgrade messages, confirmed the situation on his blog. He said that while his tool can still work for most Windows 10-related issues, it can no longer remove the message that requires users to reschedule the installation.
"This week was the first time since the program's release that I saw evidence that Windows Update can potentially override some of the Windows 10-related settings that users can put in place," Mayfield wrote.
For its part, Microsoft has already released a statement, saying that the pre-ticked option to update to Windows 10 was a "mistake," one that the company promises to resolve right away.
"As part of our effort to bring Windows 10 to existing genuine Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 customers, the Windows 10 upgrade may appear as an optional update in the Windows Update (WU) control panel. This is an intuitive and trusted place people go to find Recommended and Optional updates to Windows. In the recent Windows update, this option was checked as default; this was a mistake and we are removing Windows 10 from Windows Update for users that have not reserved a copy of Windows 10," the statement read via Venture Beat.
Regardless, PC users are advised to be extra vigilant and to monitor their settings regularly.
