Microsoft patches a record 974 flaws, and two are already under attack

Microsoft’s September Patch Tuesday released updates for 974 security flaws across its product line, including two zero-day vulnerabilities that were already being exploited. Both flaws—CVE-2026-81963 in the Windows Update stack and another privilege-escalation issue—allow attackers with existing access to a Windows machine to obtain higher privileges. The patches address these critical vulnerabilities before further exploitation can spread.