Microsoft just gave you another reason to update your PC — November's Patch Tuesday fixes 63 flaws
Including a patch for a zero-day flaw and a patch for a critical vulnerability too
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Though not as big of an event as last month, Microsoft’s November Patch Tuesday does contain fixes for 63 unique flaws including critical fixes for one actively exploited zero-day vulnerability and a critical severity bug.
Of the 63 total flaws, 4 are rated critical and 59 are important in severity. As far as the type of vulnerability associated with the bug: 29 of them are related to privilege escalation, 16 are remote code execution, 11 are information disclosure, 3 are denial of service (DoS) two security feature bypass and two are spoofing bugs.
According to reporting from Dark Reading, the zero-day vulnerability (tracked as CVE-2025-62215 ) is a privilege escalation flaw that was discovered and reported on by the Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) and Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC). It affects the Windows Kernel, is tied to a race condition and allows attackers to manipulate the timing of specific conditions. Basically, this means that attackers who have already gained access to a system can escalate to admin level rights to do even more damage.
The critical severity bug( tracked as CVE-2025-60724) is a RCE flaw in the GDI+ graphics component for Windows. According to Microsoft, attackers can trigger this vulnerability on web services by uploading malicious documents which contain a bad metafile. Exploits that are successful allow attackers to execute arbitrary code or to steal data from infected systems without requiring any user interaction.
How to keep your Windows PC safe
It's important to install any new system updates or patches on your Windows laptop or desktop computer as soon as they become available. From there, you want to make sure that Microsoft’s built-in Windows Defender antivirus is set to periodically scan your system for dangerous malware and other viruses. For extra protection though, you may also want to consider running one of the best antivirus software suites alongside it.
Besides securing your Windows devices with antivirus software, you also want to be extra careful online. Don’t click on any links or download any attachments from unknown senders as they could contain malware or send you to a phishing site designed to steal your sensitive personal and financial data. Though it should go without saying, you also want to avoid pirating software as well as TV shows and movies since a hacker could easily add malware to these illegal downloads.
By practicing good cyber hygiene and regularly updating your computer, you should be safe from the majority of attacks that use known Windows security flaws to their advantage.
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Amber Bouman is the senior security editor at Tom's Guide where she writes about antivirus software, home security, identity theft and more. She has long had an interest in personal security, both online and off, and also has an appreciation for martial arts and edged weapons. With over two decades of experience working in tech journalism, Amber has written for a number of publications including PC World, Maximum PC, Tech Hive, and Engadget covering everything from smartphones to smart breast pumps.
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