Office 2013 is expiring in 2023, we’ll explain what that means, what you must do and why there’s no need to panic!
Office 2013 gets extended support for Windows, including security updates until 11 April 2023 or about 1 year, 0 months ago.
After that date, there’ll be no more patches to Office 2013 – no fixes for bugs or security breaches.
Office 2013 will keep working
The software will still operate normally after 11 April 2023.
However, Office 2013 will become increasingly obsolete and vulnerable.
What Office 2013 users must do
Start planning to move on from Office 2013. There’s no rush to do that before 11 April 2023 but it’s something to do during 2023.
The main options are either Microsoft 365 (the ‘subscription’ based Office) or Office 2021 (the ‘perpetual licence’ choice).
Another consideration is the version of Windows on your computer, if it’s Windows 8.1 or earlier. Make sure that whatever Microsoft Office you choose is compatible with an older Windows.
Some people use the ‘end of support’ as a reason to update their computer completely with new Windows and Office.
Update Office 2013 now and in mid-April 23
It’s important to keep both Office 2013 and Windows up to date. Go to Control Panel | Windows Updates or Settings | Windows Updates depending on the Windows version. See Update Office with Microsoft Update.
Do that now and also around the ‘end of support’ date. These updates should happen automatically but it’s a good idea to check with a manual update request.
Why does ‘end of support’ matter?
It’s mostly the security and privacy risk that makes ‘end of support’ matter.
Microsoft is constantly fixing security holes in their products via patches. These are vulnerabilities that can let hackers get into your computer then steal or destroy your personal information (including passwords, account details etc.).
After a product, like Office 2013, stops getting patches, it gradually becomes more vulnerable to attacks using newly found but unfixed security problems.
This isn’t a theoretical risk. Many of the successful computer attacks happen because software has either past ‘end of support’ or not updated to include the latest security patches.
Increase risk is gradual
It’s not like Office 2013 suddenly becomes vulnerable software on 12 April 2023, the risk increases gradually after the ‘end of support’ date.
That’s why it’s important to plan for a switch to a still supported version of Microsoft Office.
