Microsoft Patches a Record 974 Security Flaws in Biggest Update Ever
Microsoft's September 2026 updates fixed a record-breaking 974 vulnerabilities. The entire Windows family has 723 of these flaws, while Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2 themselves received fixes for 611 CVEs in builds 26100.9445 and 26200.9445. This is more than 10 times last September, when Microsoft faced just 86 CVEs.
Microsoft says AI tools and more efficient researchers are driving more vulnerability reports. The company now recommends deploying critical updates within three days.
Security teams also flag remote code execution risks in Exchange Server, Remote Desktop Services, DNS, DHCP, and SMB as high-priority patching targets.
Some trackers report 966 vulnerabilities when counting only Patch Tuesday releases, while others list 964 customer-actionable CVEs after excluding cloud-side mitigations. If you include 25 non-Microsoft CVEs with Microsoft's fixes, the total rises to 999. This could be the "new normal" for 2026 and beyond, with monthly totals climbing sharply since mid-year.
After updating, users...
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