How Can a Business Be Impacted by Unpatched Software?

It’s no secret that software often does not work as intended. Developers frequently discover bugs and patch them out. The same can be said for security vulnerabilities. Despite the importance of these updates, small businesses often fail to implement these patches and updates in a timely manner, a practice which can lead to more problems down the road.

Software bugs can range from very problematic to minor inconveniences. Some can cause a software to behave in an unpredictable manner. Others might expose critical data or leave backdoors in the code that could lead to security breaches. Let’s explore some of the issues that software bugs can bring about from both a customer and worker perspective.

Customer Satisfaction Takes a Dip

A positive reputation is key to any successful business endeavor, and something as simple as a software glitch can create major problems in this regard. For example, if a customer service portal simply does not work, it can create major issues for your customers when they seek to get help with other areas of your business. With most businesses having at least some online presence, this is a very real possibility, and customers are more likely to share their experiences when that experience is negative.

Small Issues Suggest Larger Problems

If a company is issuing software to paying customers, then there is an expectation that it works as intended. Things like a lack of attention to detail, grammatical errors, or UI issues can all contribute to the larger quality of the program. Small issues can often provide clues to larger underlying problems that could surface after a long enough use.

Security Becomes a Concern

If software is not regularly updated, be it a website, application, or operational software, vulnerabilities are likely to be discovered by hackers. This is why you see updates happen so frequently, especially by big name developers. People don’t want to use tools that put their financial information or personal data at risk (or at least, they shouldn’t). Patching these issues and testing them periodically is something that all developers should do; failing to do so could lead to disasters just waiting to happen.

The Issue Expands Over Time

It is extremely important that you have a patch management strategy in place to guarantee the operational effectiveness of your business technology. Neglected software can become riddled with problems in the long term, and if a customer or vendor finds these issues, you can bet that they can cost businesses a considerable amount of time and resources to rectify, if they get resolved at all. If you fail to do anything about problematic software for your business, you are just throwing money onto a bonfire, hoping desperately to snuff out the ever-growing flame.

Since software is such a major part of your business, you have to be extremely careful about how you implement it and update it with the latest patches and security updates. Osgood Unlimited can help you make this happen. To learn more, reach out to us at (978) 912-7006.