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Breaking Windows: Why FIs are abandoning the longtime OS for ATMs
A growing number of FIs are deciding to walk away from Windows-based ATMs. Some are questioning the wisdom of continuing to invest in a platform that appears to be headed for extinction. Here's a look at the powerful market forces driving deployers to walk away from Windows.
December 13, 2018 by atm Atom — blogger, atmatom
By Daryl Cornell, CEO, Triton
In what might be the most underreported story of 2018 in the ATM industry, a growing number of financial institutions are making the decision to simply walk away from Windows-based ATMs. Others are questioning the wisdom of continuing to spend capital on an ATM platform that appears to be headed for extinction.
This tidal change in ATM buying patterns is a major threat to manufacturers and deployers alike, yet it has received scant attention in the press. It is powerful market forces which are driving the stampede away from Windows-based ATMs, including:
The spiraling cost of continuous Windows ATM upgrades
In little more than a year, financial institutions face yet another ATM upgrade/ replacement cycle when Windows 7 goes end of life, to be replaced by Windows 10 (whose sunset has already been announced!) An estimated 85 percent of all Windows ATMs will need to be upgraded or replaced in order to remain on a Microsoft supported operating system in 2020. This comes on the heels of the Windows 7 upgrade from Windows XP which in some cases is still being completed.
As the savings from shuttering bank branches are now a memory, the staggering costs of operating Windows ATM fleets are now clearly visible. In fact, this latest forced migration of PC-based ATMs to Windows 10 before 2020 has been called "the final straw" by many Windows ATM buyers. With Windows ATM upgrade benefits being described as somewhere between "nominal" and "non-existent", financial institutions and their Boards are asking, "Why?"
The growing risks of vulnerable Windows ATM security
If the spiraling cost of operating Windows ATMs wasn't bad enough, ATMs running Windows operating systems are now suffering from an increasing number of malware attacks, hacking and "jackpotting." These attacks have exploited vulnerabilities in Windows software, Windows ATM configurations and just plain user error.
You would think that all of the upgrade pain and expense of moving to a new Windows ATM platform every few years would bring with it enhanced security. Unfortunately, this simply hasn't been the case. With Windows ATM security breaches becoming more and more frequent and costly, financial institutions and their Boards are asking, "Why?"
The alarming lack of Windows ATM manufacturer support
Taking a page out of Microsoft's book, ATM manufacturers have steadily shortened Windows ATM product life cycles. Why support 10-, 5- or even 3-year old ATMs with hardware and software upgrades when you can simply discontinue product support and force Windows ATM users to buy expensive new gear?
The poster child for this scheme is the latest move to Windows 10 which will reportedly require the upgrade or replacement of most Windows ATMs. In other words, Windows ATMs which are fewer than 10 years old have already been declared "end of life" by manufacturers. Newer, "supported" Windows ATMs, some only a few years old, will need hardware upgrades to the tune of thousands of dollars each. In addition to expensive upgrades, Windows ATM users have been pressured into paying for OEM hardware and software maintenance licenses.
These significant operating expenses supposedly ensure manufacturer support for banks' investments in ATM fleets. Unfortunately, while manufacturer support for Windows ATMs has steadily shrunk, these OEM maintenance fees have not. As Windows ATM manufacturer support continues to wane, financial institutions and their Boards are asking, "Why?"
The senselessness of paying for unneeded Windows ATM functionality
While the death of cash has been greatly exaggerated, the death of checks is real, and documented. For a couple hundred bucks, businesses of all sizes now have desktop check scanners. And most banks now allow customers to deposit checks by taking a picture of it with their mobile phone.
Those consumers who do choose to tote their checks to bank branches are most likely seeking conversation with a teller, not an ATM with advanced check deposit functionality.
Cash deposits have also been significantly reduced as "merchant fill" retail ATMs have been deployed at retail locations throughout the U.S. Estimates are that $5 billion to 8 billion is efficiently recycled annually as merchants "deposit" till cash into 300,000-plus retail ATMs. While expensive Windows ATMs continue to come with check and cash deposit functionality as standard features, financial institutions and their Boards are asking, "Why?"
What does all of this mean for the ATM industry?
Although there will always be a few financial institutions with unlimited ATM budgets who are comfortable with the constant replacement of ATMs, there is now a growing groundswell of protest. Partly in response to this discontent, the ATM Industry Association has announced its own blueprint for the next generation of ATMs which will no longer be based on the Microsoft Windows platform.
Whether the next generation of ATMs is Linux-based or CE/IOT-based, what is clear is that ATMs running on the Windows operating system could soon be dinosaurs. As manufacturers continue to hawk Windows ATMs that are apparently destined for the dustbin, financial institutions and their boards are asking, "Why?"
About atm Atom
Included In This Story
Triton Systems
Triton FI based products • NO Windows 10™ Upgrade • Secured locked down system that is virus/malware resistant • Flexible configurations - Drive-up and Walk-up • Triton's high security standards • NFC, anti-skim card reader, IP camera and level 1 vaults are all options • Triton Connect monitoring • Lower cost
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