The 30th June marks the one year anniversary of Magento 1 End of Life (EoL). This was the date announced by Adobe that security patches and updates would end for ecommerce websites operating on Magento 1.
One year on, there are still thousands of websites using Magento 1 in the UK. Some may have been abandoned and many more will be in the process of migrating to Magento 2 (now known as Adobe Commerce). But there are several that expect to remain on the platform for a good while longer.
So what are the implications of remaining on Magento 1? What has happened over the course of the last twelve months? We take a deeper look…
Why do I need to leave Magento 1?
Magento 1 still works. The EoL did not mean that Magento 1 stores would vanish nor immediately become impossible to manage overnight. However, there are a great many risks and challenges to merchants, and their customers, for continuing on with the platform.
- The expense. While supporting a Magento 1 site isn’t impossible, it will be much more difficult to do so. It will cost more to maintain and even more investment to solve any bugs that come along. And, as support has now vanished, the number of bugs that will hit the platform will continue to rise.
- Vulnerable to hackers. The most important loss from EoL was the availability of security patches. The withdrawal of security support from Adobe means that sites are on their own to develop patches. This vulnerability was exploited in September last year, when almost 2,000 Magento stores around the world were attacked in the biggest coordinated hacking campaign since 2015.
- Lack of compliance. Without support, the onus is now on the merchant to ensure that their site remains compliant and that their customers are protected.
- Falling behind. Many third-party suppliers and tech partners moved away from Magento 1 and are no longer offering integrations or support for the platform. If you want to ensure your site remains up to date and competitive, then it will be increasingly tricky to do so on Magento 1
- Shortfall in resources. As technology moves on, and old technology becomes obsolete, developers will focus more on Adobe Commerce, and newer opportunities such as PWA and Hyva. it will become increasingly challenging to find developers or agencies who are willing to look after a Magento 1 store.
- Customer first. By remaining on Magento 1 you are not just putting your business at risk, you are putting your customers at risk. Without adequate security, shoppers’ data, including their credit card details, could be easily stolen. In addition, the average ecommerce shopper is much more savvy than one or two years ago. Having spent so much more time shopping online due to the pandemic, they will be on the lookout for anything that feels or looks untrustworthy. If they see anything they don’t like, they will bounce away to your competitor who does have a secure site.
- Missing out. By staying put, your business is missing out on the great many advantages that Adobe Commerce has to offer. From the custom page builder to faster speeds, improved security and an easier-to-use back end, Adobe Commerce is designed to boost sales, accelerate growth and increase conversion rates. Don’t miss out on providing an enhanced user experience by sticking with Magento 1.
Magento 1 Community and Enterprise users
Over 50% of Magento 1 websites are using the Community version of the software. The most popular of which is Magento 1.9. This means that it is predominantly smaller businesses that are at risk of falling foul of EoL. It is likely that these sites haven’t migrated as they consider the cost of replatforming to be too high. However, by sticking with the platform those companies are jeopardising their future success. Investing in a move to Adobe Commerce will help them to avoid the vulnerabilities of Magento 1, as well as helping their company to grow.
In addition, roughly 20% of Enterprise customers remain on a version of Magento 1. A merchant that uses Magento Enterprise is typically larger, with a greater annual turnover, and so they should be seeking to invest in their site’s upgrade as soon as possible.
Get help Migrating
To migrate your Magento 1 site to Adobe Commerce, get in touch with our world-class commerce specialists. A Silver-level Adobe Solution Partner, our team has migrated many sites and will offer you advanced support and technical expertise to upgrade your ecommerce platform. Take a look at our latest migration project for jewellery retailer ChloBo here.
