A PSA To Anyone With A Windows 7 or 8 Machine · 5:44am Mar 14th, 2016
Windows has begun converting PCs to Windows 10 without users permission.
If it hasn't already happened, I recommend turning off automatic updates. Currently it seems the command to start the Windows 10 installation is now hidden as one specific updated marked as an urgent security update. If automatic updates are on, it will start this process without your permission. If it's going into the installation, you can roll back the install from Windows 10, or you can just deny the Windows 10 EULA and it reverts.
Assuming it doesn't brick your computer.
Methods for preventing this issue outright are detailed in the linked thread in the comments. From what I understand, disabling the automatic update feature works.
Anyway, wanted to spread the word in case there was a chance this may affect some of you still. Good luck, and I hope this doesn't affect anyone adversely.
... So, now that I have everyone's attention, would any of you be interested in learning about Our Lord And Saviour, Richard Stallman?
This 'news' is actually pretty old, and kept circulating around every once in awhile. The same thing actually popped up about six months ago in my news feed.
What actually 'installed' was a reminder/ad to upgrade to Windows 10. Unless you have selected in the past that you reserved a copy of Windows 10, the OS won't auto-upgrade without your permission. The OS will only upgrade to Windows 10 if you have reserved a copy early on and selected to autoinstall, or selected the option to upgrade when the pop up/reminder appears.
Note: Typing this on a Windows 7 machine with Windows Update activated since forever.
I set mine to not install recommended, and turned off updates completely on my parents machine over this one (a month or two ago when this was originally floated)[My father is about to turn 70 and there is no way he could deal with windows 10]. It seems that the forced upgrades are now starting to happen. Back then they just said essentially that it was coming.
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Windows 10 may be a better end user experience, but between those key-loggers gathering "telemetry" data after you tell them to stop, and Microsoft's unsubtle attempt to use the UWP to force devs to pay them a toll to make programs for their OS, I find myself in great distaste with Windows 10. Not to mention some people have apps that work on 7 but not on 10, and the unmonitored installation can brick a computer with incompatible hardware. Furthermore, there's something that bothers my inner consumer right's advocate that Microsoft feels it's entitled to change the nature of a product that I own without my consent
Also, I didn't suggest never updating your computer (although I hear told a lot of Windows 7 updates these days install more "telemetry" protocols), I suggested turning off AUTOMATIC updates and reading the thread, which identifies which update will install Windows 10 without your permission.
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It's actually not as old as you think. The reason it keeps "recirculating" is because at various points the update has applied to more people than before.
First, the GWX nag program was only installed for people who selected the optional updates in windows update, and only those with home or home premium editions. Anyone with Professional or Enterprise with their computers connected to a domain would never see it.
Then it was moved into the "important updates" category for home and home premium users, which caused it to be automatically installed for any of those users who had automatic updates enabled. This caused it to make the news again.
Then, GWX was changed so that it would not only nag the user to install windows 10, but also actually download the install image in the background without any consent. (It wouldn't actually install it without the user accepting the nag prompts, but it did use up several gigabytes of disk space without asking) This caused it to make the news again.
This time, it was moved into the urgent security update category. Anyone with automatic updates enabled, even those who were on domain-connected Professional editions would receive the nag program. I noticed when this started last week, because suddenly all the computers in our office got it. Naturally, this made the news again.
I'm not actually sure what causes GWX to attempt to actually start the upgrade without the user accepting the nags, but I've heard enough reports of this happening to surmise that either it has a very deceptive confirmation dialog that people are accepting without realizing it, or it does actually begin the update without consent under some specific conditions.
Anyway, I hope this makes it clear that this isn't just people that are just being super slowpokes about the news. Each time this has circulated it has been a result of a new change that exposed more users to the problem.