Security News

Microsoft releases tool to speed up recovery of systems borked by CrowdStrike update
2024-07-22 12:08

By now, most people are aware of – or have been personally affected by – the largest IT outage the world have ever witnessed, courtesy of a defective update for Crowdstrike Falcon Sensors that...

Ad-injecting malware posing as DwAdsafe ad blocker uses Microsoft-signed driver
2024-07-22 03:00

ESET Research has discovered a sophisticated Chinese browser injector: a signed, vulnerable, ad-injecting driver from a mysterious Chinese company. An attacker with a non-privileged account could leverage the vulnerable driver to obtain SYSTEM privileges or inject libraries into remote processes to cause further damage, all while using a legitimate and signed driver.

Microsoft releases Windows repair tool to remove CrowdStrike driver
2024-07-22 01:22

Microsoft has released a custom WinPE recovery tool to find and remove the faulty CrowdStrike update that crashed an estimated 8.5 million Windows devices on Friday. [...]

Microsoft confirms CrowdStrike update also hit Windows 365 PCs
2024-07-20 15:24

Microsoft says a faulty CrowdStrike Falcon update, which caused widespread outages by crashing Windows systems worldwide, also resulted in Windows 365 Cloud PCs getting stuck in reboot loops, rendering them unusable. "We have been made aware of an issue impacting Virtual Machines running Windows Client and Windows Server, running the CrowdStrike Falcon agent, which may encounter a bug check and get stuck in a restarting state," Microsoft said on its Service Health Status page.

Major Microsoft 365 outage caused by Azure configuration change
2024-07-19 09:57

Microsoft says an Azure configuration change caused a major Microsoft 365 outage on Thursday, affecting customers across the Central US region. [...]

Microsoft fixes bug blocking Windows 11 Photos from starting
2024-07-18 14:38

Microsoft has fixed a known issue preventing the Microsoft Photos app from starting on some Windows 11 22H2 and 23H2 systems. Last week, Redmond fixed two more Windows 11 issues causing update problems when using Windows Update automation scripts and triggering reboot loops and taskbar problems after installing the June KB5039302 preview update.

Microsoft: Windows 11 23H2 now available for all eligible devices
2024-07-18 11:37

Microsoft says the Windows 11 2023 Update has entered the broad deployment phase and is now available to all seekers on eligible systems.Also known as Windows 11 23H2, this latest release will now be offered to all Windows devices not configured to defer feature updates and unaffected by compatibility holds.

Microsoft announces new Windows 'checkpoint' cumulative updates
2024-07-16 16:18

Microsoft will introduce checkpoint cumulative updates starting in late 2024 for systems running devices running Windows Server 2025 and Windows 11, version 24H2 or later. This new type of update will deliver security fixes and new features via smaller, incremental differentials that include only changes added since the previous checkpoint cumulative update.

Microsoft links Scattered Spider hackers to Qilin ransomware attacks
2024-07-16 13:40

Microsoft says the Scattered Spider cybercrime gang has added Qilin ransomware to its arsenal and is now using it in attacks. "In the second quarter of 2024, financially motivated threat actor Octo Tempest, our most closely tracked ransomware threat actor, added RansomHub and Qilin to its ransomware payloads in campaigns," Microsoft said Monday.

Microsoft finally fixes Outlook alerts bug caused by December updates
2024-07-16 12:17

Microsoft has finally fixed a known Outlook issue, confirmed in February, which was triggering incorrect security alerts after installing the December security updates for Outlook Desktop. The company acknowledged the bug in early February after many Microsoft 365 users reported seeing unexpected warnings that "This location may be unsafe" and "Microsoft Office has identified a potential security concern" when double-clicking ICS calendar files.