All news with #microsoft tag

🔒 Microsoft’s October Patch Tuesday addresses 167 vulnerabilities, including seven rated critical that require immediate CISO attention. Notable fixes include a 9.8 RCE in Windows Server Update Service (WSUS) (CVE-2025-59287) and two Office RCEs exploitable via the Preview Pane. Two legacy Agere modem driver flaws include an in-the-wild zero day and a prior public disclosure, prompting Microsoft to remove ltmdm64.sys from Windows. Administrators should prioritize internet-facing services, kernel-mode drivers, and review WSUS exposure and patch management architecture.

⚠️ Microsoft’s October 2025 updates close 172 security holes and include at least two actively exploited zero‑days. The company removed a decades-old Agere modem driver to mitigate CVE-2025-24990 and patched an elevation-of-privilege zero-day in RasMan (CVE-2025-59230). A critical unauthenticated RCE in WSUS (CVE-2025-59287) carries a 9.8 threat score and should be prioritized. This release also marks the end of security updates for Windows 10, prompting ESU enrollment or migration options.

🔔 Microsoft has issued the final cumulative update for Windows 10, KB5066791, as the OS reaches end of support on October 14, 2025. The mandatory update delivers Microsoft's October 2025 Patch Tuesday fixes, closing six zero-day vulnerabilities and addressing 172 additional flaws. After installation, Windows 10 22H2 and 21H2 are updated to builds 19045.6456 and 19044.6456; users can install via Windows Update or the Microsoft Update Catalog and may schedule restarts to complete the process.

⚠️ Microsoft notified administrators that Exchange Server 2016 and Exchange Server 2019 reached end of support on October 14, 2025, and will no longer receive security patches or time zone updates after the October 2025 security releases. The company strongly advises migrating to Exchange Online or upgrading to Exchange Server Subscription Edition (SE). In-place upgrades from Exchange 2019 to SE follow the same process as installing a Cumulative Update. Customers still on Exchange 2016 or 2013 should upgrade to SE or first move to Exchange 2019.

🔒 Microsoft released its October 2025 Patch Tuesday, addressing 172 vulnerabilities including six zero‑day flaws and eight Critical issues. The updates include five remote code execution and three elevation‑of‑privilege critical bugs, along with numerous information disclosure, denial‑of‑service and security feature bypass fixes. Notable actions include the removal of an Agere modem driver and patches for exploited elevation‑of‑privilege and SMB/SQL Server issues. Windows 10 reaches end of support with this release; Extended Security Updates remain available for organizations and consumers.

🚀 Microsoft and Oracle have expanded Oracle Database@Azure with broader regional coverage and support for Oracle Database 19c and 23ai, plus full support for Base Database, Exadata (Dedicated and Exascale), and Autonomous Database. The update introduces continuous zero-ETL mirroring into OneLake via Oracle GoldenGate and native integrations with Microsoft Fabric, enabling real-time analytics with Copilot Studio, Azure AI Foundry, and Power BI. Security and operational management are strengthened through Microsoft Defender, Microsoft Sentinel, Entra ID, and Azure Arc, while Azure Accelerate for Oracle and marketplace programs streamline migrations and partner engagement.

🔒 Microsoft has released cumulative updates KB5066835 and KB5066793 for Windows 11 versions 25H2/24H2 and 23H2 as part of the October 2025 Patch Tuesday. These mandatory updates move systems to Build 26200.6899 (25H2/24H2) and 226x1.6050 (23H2) and address recent security vulnerabilities plus several functional issues. Notable fixes include a Chromium print preview hang, PowerShell Remoting timeouts, Windows Hello USB IR camera setup failures, and a gaming sign-in input bug. The update also removes the ltmdm64.sys modem driver and rolls out new AI, accessibility, and File Explorer features gradually.

🛡️ Microsoft released ExCyTIn-Bench, an open-source benchmarking tool to evaluate how well AI systems perform realistic cybersecurity investigations. It simulates a multistage Azure SOC using 57 Microsoft Sentinel log tables and measures multistep reasoning, tool usage, and evidence synthesis. The benchmark offers fine-grained, actionable metrics for CISOs, product owners, and researchers.

⚠️ Microsoft says Windows 10 reached end of support on October 14, 2025, and will no longer receive feature or security updates. Machines will continue to run but will be at greater risk of viruses and malware without patches. Microsoft advises customers to upgrade to Windows 11, migrate to Windows 365 in the cloud, enroll in Extended Security Updates (ESU), or use LTSC editions for specialized devices. ESU pricing and limited free enrollment options for home and EEA users are noted.

🔒 Microsoft’s October 2025 Patch Tuesday addresses 172 vulnerabilities, including two publicly disclosed issues, three zero‑day flaws and eight Critical CVEs. The bulk of fixes target Windows (134 patches), Microsoft Office (18) and Azure (6), with elevation-of-privilege and remote code execution as the primary risks. Windows 10 reaches end of life on October 14, 2025; hosts must be on 22H2 to receive Extended Security Updates. CrowdStrike recommends prioritizing patches for actively exploited zero‑days and using Falcon Exposure Management dashboards to track and remediate affected systems.

🔧 Microsoft details OCP contributions to accelerate open-source infrastructure for frontier-scale AI, focusing on power, cooling, networking, security, and sustainability. It highlights innovations such as solid-state transformers, a power-stabilization paper with OpenAI and NVIDIA, and a next-generation HXU for liquid cooling. Networking efforts include ESUN and scale-up Ethernet workstreams, while security contributions introduce Caliptra 2.1, Adams Bridge 2.0, and L.O.C.K. The post also advances fleet lifecycle management, carbon accounting, and waste-heat reuse for globally deployable AI datacenters.

🔒 Microsoft is restricting access to Internet Explorer mode in Edge after discovering attackers leveraged an unpatched zero-day in the Chakra JavaScript engine combined with social engineering to achieve remote code execution and privilege escalation. The company removed quick UI triggers (toolbar button, context menu, hamburger items) so IE mode now requires explicit configuration under Settings > Default Browser. Commercial, policy-managed deployments remain unaffected.

🛡️Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) now supports the latest General Distribution Release (GDR) and Cumulative Update packages for Microsoft SQL Server, including SQL Server 2016 SP3+GDR (KB5065226), 2017 CU31+GDR (KB5065225), 2019 CU32+GDR (KB5065222) and 2022 CU21 (KB5065865). These updates address multiple security vulnerabilities tracked as CVE-2025-47997, CVE-2025-55227 and CVE-2024-21907. AWS recommends that customers upgrade their RDS SQL Server instances using the Amazon RDS Management Console, AWS SDKs or the AWS CLI and follow the RDS SQL Server upgrade guidance.

🔐 Microsoft frames security culture as a company-wide movement driven by people and operationalized through the Secure Future Initiative (SFI). The company overhauled employee education—launching the Microsoft Security Academy, refreshing the Security Foundations series, and requiring three annual sessions (90 minutes total)—to address AI-enabled attacks, deepfakes, and identity threats. Leadership mandates, linked compensation, measurable training outcomes (99% completion; rising satisfaction and relevancy scores), new identity and AI guides, Deputy CISOs in engineering, and embedded DevSecOps are highlighted as evidence of measurable cultural change.

⚠️ Microsoft is investigating an ongoing incident that is preventing some customers from accessing Microsoft 365 applications. The issue has been tagged as an incident in the admin center while Redmond reviews telemetry and recent service changes to identify the root cause. Microsoft first acknowledged the problem at 05:06 AM UTC and said it continued analysis nearly four hours later to develop a fix. Impact appears limited to users served by the affected infrastructure.

⚠️ Microsoft says the Windows 11 Media Creation Tool (MCT) version 26100.6584 released on September 29, 2025, may close unexpectedly on Windows 10 22H2 devices without showing an error. The company is working on a fix and recommends downloading a Disk Image (ISO) for x64 systems as a temporary workaround. Microsoft also notes the MCT is not supported on Windows 10 ARM64 machines, following earlier ARM64 compatibility problems after the Windows 11 25H2 rollout.

🔒 Microsoft has tightened access to Internet Explorer mode in Edge after credible reports in August 2025 that unknown actors abused the legacy compatibility feature to compromise devices. Attackers used social engineering to coerce users into reloading pages in IE mode and then chained unpatched Chakra JavaScript engine exploits to gain remote code execution and elevate privileges. Microsoft removed the IE mode toolbar button, context-menu and hamburger-menu entries; IE mode must now be enabled explicitly via Edge settings and sites must be added to an IE mode pages list.

⚠ Microsoft warned that devices running Windows 11 23H2 Home and Pro editions will stop receiving security updates after November 11, 2025. The November 2025 monthly security update will be the final update for those editions. Users should upgrade to Windows 11 24H2 or later to remain protected; note that some PCs may be prevented from upgrading by a safeguard for SenseShield code-obfuscation drivers.

🔒 Microsoft warns that a financially motivated group tracked as Storm-2657 is hijacking employee accounts to redirect payroll by altering profiles in third-party HR SaaS platforms such as Workday. Attacks rely on AitM phishing, MFA gaps and SSO abuse rather than software vulnerabilities. Observed tactics include creating inbox rules to delete warning notifications and enrolling attacker-controlled phone numbers for persistent access. Microsoft reported compromises at multiple U.S. universities and recommends phishing-resistant, passwordless MFA such as FIDO2 keys, and reviews of MFA devices and mailbox rules to detect takeover.

🔒 Microsoft has made Windows Backup for Organizations generally available, offering an enterprise-grade, opt-in solution to preserve Windows settings, user preferences, and Microsoft Store-installed apps. The capability is available after installing the September 2025 Windows Monthly Cumulative Update on Entra-joined devices and must be enabled by administrators through Intune or backup and restore policy settings. Backups are stored in Exchange Online in the tenant's selected Country/Region, are protected by encryption, and are accessible to Microsoft personnel only under strict oversight for troubleshooting or legal compliance, helping streamline migrations to Windows 11 during device setup.