On November 12, 2024, Microsoft released its Patch Tuesday updates, addressing 89 security vulnerabilities, including four critical zero-day flaws.

Among the most concerning vulnerabilities are CVE-2024-43451, which exposes NTLM hashes, and CVE-2024-49039, which allows privilege elevation through a crafted application.

The updates include fixes for 52 remote code execution (RCE) vulnerabilities, highlighting a significant prevalence of such flaws in this release.

Out of the 89 vulnerabilities, only four were classified as critical, while the majority, rated as important, require local access for exploitation.

In total, the updates address 26 elevation of privilege vulnerabilities and several others across various categories.

These patches are crucial as they respond to emerging threats, particularly those targeting NTLMv2 hashes, which have seen multiple exploits this year.

Users of Microsoft products, including Windows OS, Office, and SQL Server, are strongly advised to apply these updates promptly to mitigate security risks.

For detailed information about the resolved vulnerabilities, users can refer to Microsoft's advisory report and update guide.

With five vulnerabilities actively exploited, immediate testing and deployment of patches are a priority for organizations.

In addition to Microsoft, other companies like Adobe, Cisco, and Citrix also released security updates in November 2024, addressing various vulnerabilities.

Experts recommend organizations to apply patches, educate users about these threats, and conduct regular vulnerability scans to ensure data security.

The vulnerabilities, particularly CVE-2024-49039, are associated with advanced persistent threats, indicating their potential use in targeted attacks.