Although the upgrade to Windows 10 is optional, Microsoft acknowledged that due to a mistake, the update was automatically installed on an unknown number of PCs.
Since July, Windows 10 has been rolling out in waves across different parts of the world. The operating system is running successfully on over 110 million PCs, and is available as a free upgrade to several users running genuine Windows 7 and 8.1 PCs.
But due to unexpected error, several users have reported that Windows 10 upgrade is being downloaded and installed automatically on their PCs.
From Opt-In to “Forced-In”
The option of “Upgrade to Windows 10” had been checked by default, and users had no clue that they've inadvertently given thumbs to Microsoft for proceeding with the upgrade.
The installation process has several options from where the upgrade could have been cancelled. But, many users may have continued with the upgrade, believing they had no choice to avoid that situation.
However, the company removed the default check, and issued a statement saying, “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 the check.”
The changes are expected to take effect in few hours. But if, in coming days, the checkbox still remains pre-ticked, don't forget to let us know.
Source: Ars Technica
