Delays in updating software and operating systems are putting organisations at greater risk of attacks, according to research by Duo Security.

The survey, based on real-world data*, found that less than a third (31 per cent) of Windows endpoints are running the latest version, Windows 10.

More than half (53 per cent) of endpoints are running an out-of-date version of Flash, leaving them wide open to various vulnerabilities. And one in eight (13 per cent) endpoints are running an unsupported version of the Internet Explorer browser.

Duo Security reports that the picture becomes even bleaker when the spotlight is put on the healthcare sector. Three quarters of all healthcare organisations are running Windows 7 – higher than the industry average and likely a factor in why the NHS fared so badly during the recent WannaCrypt ransomware attack. A minority (3 per cent) of all endpoints are still running totally unsupported Windows XP. ®

*The survey is based on a global dataset of 4.6 million enterprise endpoints.