Microsoft has recently released the August 2024 Patch Tuesday security update, addressing critical issues for Windows 10 and 11 operating systems.
According to Microsoft, the latest security patch released by the company addresses a total of 90 vulnerabilities, bugs, and issues related to security software. These vulnerabilities affect a wide range of products, including Windows and Windows Components, Office and Office Components, .NET and Visual Studio, Azure, Co-Pilot, Microsoft Dynamics, Teams, Secure Boot, and several others.
Microsoft's assessment of the latest security patch highlights that seven vulnerabilities are considered "critical," 79 are important, and one is of moderate severity. Notably, four of these vulnerabilities have already been publicly disclosed, and six are currently under active attack. The company has confirmed that several of these vulnerabilities are being exploited in the wild. Among the most significant vulnerabilities is CVE-2024-38140, which allows for remote code execution in the Windows Reliable Multicast Transport Driver (RMCAST). Additionally, CVE-2024-38063 poses a similar threat through Windows TCP/IP. Other notable vulnerabilities include CVE-2022-3775 and CVE-2023-40547, both of which impact all Server versions, from 2008 R2 to the latest 2022 release.
Alongside addressing critical vulnerabilities, Microsoft has also improved File Explorer in its latest update. Users can now easily duplicate tabs by right-clicking on any open tab and selecting the "Duplicate tab" option from the context menu. Additionally, several other issues with File Explorer have been fixed, including memory leaks when interacting with storage, freezing while browsing folders, errors in the search field, and various user interface glitches.
The latest patch also addresses a BitLocker issue that caused the dreaded Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) for users after installing the July update. This fix means that affected devices should no longer unexpectedly boot into the recovery screen. However, users are still advised to keep their BitLocker keys secure to guard against similar issues that might arise in the future.
Note: For Windows 11 22H2 users, the Home and Pro versions will end service on October 8, 2024. After this date, users will only receive security updates and will no longer receive feature updates or other bug fixes. It is recommended to upgrade to Windows 11 23H2 to ensure safety and security. (According to Microsoft)
To update to the latest patch on a supported computer, users should open the Settings app, go to Windows Update, and select the option to download the latest update. Typically, the latest cumulative update for Windows 11 is automatically installed on PCs via Windows Update.