A Californian woman won US$10,000 after suing Microsoft for an unwanted Windows 10 install that crippled her business.
The Seattle Times reported this week that the owner of a California travel agency, Teri Goldstein, did not authorise the installation of the new operating system - but the automatic installation went ahead anyway and failed, leaving her computer unusable for days.
Goldstein was awarded US$10,000 after taking the vendor to court to seek compensation for a new computer and the loss of earnings during downtime.
Microsoft dropped its subsequent appeal, telling The Seattle Times it was to avoid the expense of further litigation. A Microsoft Australia spokesperson said: “We’re continuing to listen to customer feedback and evolve the upgrade experience based on their feedback.”
Goldstein said Microsoft's customer support didn’t fix the issue. "I had never heard of Windows 10. Nobody ever asked me if I wanted to update."
Customers have been plagued with issues related to automatic Windows 10 downloads and installs since it was introduced in July last year.
While the operating system is offered as a free update, Microsoft changed Windows 10 from an ‘Optional’ update to a ‘Recommended’ update in February, which means it would install automatically for Windows 7 and 8.1 customers with automatic updates turned on.
Microsoft has copped criticism for not being transparent about the Windows 10 install, with the absence of a button to opt out when prompted.
Windows 10 had surpassed more than 300 million users as of 6 May. The free upgrade offer will expire on 29 July.
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