Tech companies are always pushing customers to, as much as possible, use newer versions of softwares and hardwares. True to this practice, Google has announced that its flagship Internet browser, Chrome, will drop support for operating systems older than the Windows 7 and the Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks.

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With this announcement from Google, the Chrome browser will no longer support Windows XP, Windows Vista and older Windows operating systems. On the side of the Mac, any versions of the Apple operating system that are older than the Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks will no longer be supported as well.

Google Chrome is considered by many tech analysts as the most popular Internet browser. Due to rampant incidents of online hacking and identity theft, Google announced that the recently released Chrome version 50 will require a computer that runs at least on Windows 7 or OS X 10.9. Google added that the reason for this requirement is security related.

Older versions of Chrome will still continue to run on older operating systems. However, these versions of the Internet browser will not receive regular updates and security patches which could leave users vulnerable to hackers.

Aside from Google, Microsoft, in the past, has also expressed its decision to stop releasing security updates for older versions of its once mighty Internet browser, the Internet Explorer. Some tech analysts consider this decision as part of a marketing strategy in order to sell Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows 10. However, some security experts said that it is more than just for commercial gain, but also for the benefit of the users.

Microsoft is pushing users to use its new Edge browser. Windows users, who still prefer to use Internet Explorer, are required to upgrade to Internet Explorer 11 if they want to receive regular security update and patches. Moreover, Internet Explorer 11 is only available to computers running Window 7 or newer versions.

TagsGoogle, Chrome, Google Chrome, windows, windows vista, Windows XP, OS X, Mac, OS X10.9, Mac OS X 10.9