Credit: WINK News. Is your laptop putting you in danger of being targeted by cyber criminals? There are no set rules about how often a laptop should be replaced, but a main concern to protect hardware from cyber criminals is looking to see if the operating system on a device is still being updated. Software developers such Apple and Microsoft are constantly searching their systems for bugs that could make people’s laptops vulnerable to cyberattacks. These types of companies issue fixes when they discover potential risks. It’s the user’s job to install updates when they are made available The problem arises when a company announces they’re no longer going to issue updates for the software. That’s when it’s important to upgrade the software, but sometimes it’s easier to buy a newer device. Sometimes, even when a new upgrade is issues, it’s best to upgrade to a new device as well. Some of these devices, even though they may still be able to update the operating system, it could be that it’s so advanced and so large that the current device system is just too old and can’t handle it. When in doubt, go to an experts to find out if a device needs an upgrade, an update or just a cleanup of its system.