Today is Patch Tuesday, July 2013, and here is what you need to know. Microsoft is releasing a total of seven updates as part of this new Patch Tuesday. Six of the seven updates are marked as Critical and they fix various products including Windows 8, Windows RT, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office, Visual Studio, among others.
Microsoft hasn’t yet released more details about the updates as a security measure, but when updates are categorized as critical security update are related to vulnerabilities that could allow remote code execution without the user interaction.
Windows 8 will get six, while Windows RT will only get five of the critical updates. Finally, the update marked as Important is target to Windows Defender for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.
All the updates rolling out today cover every major release of the operating system, from Windows XP to Windows 7, to Windows 8, to Windows Server. However none of the updates for Patch Tuesday July 2013 applies for Windows 8.1 Preview or Windows 8.1 RT Preview. This means those testing the preview won’t see any of these updates.
Like always you can install this updates manually by going to the Control Panel, but if you have Windows Update configured correctly the updates will download and install automatically.
Update: Here is the official list of Patch Tuesday July 2013 updates (For more information refer to the Microsoft security bulletin summary of July 2013.):
- Vulnerabilities in .NET Framework and Silverlight Could Allow Remote Code Execution (KB2861561)
- Vulnerabilities in Windows Kernel-Mode Drivers Could Allow Remote Code Execution (KB2850851)
- Vulnerability in GDI+ Could Allow Remote Code Execution (KB2848295)
- Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer (KB2846071)
- Vulnerability in Microsoft DirectShow Could Allow Remote Code Execution (KB2845187)
- Vulnerability in Windows Media Format Runtime Could Allow Remote Code Execution (KB2847883)
- Vulnerability in Windows Defender Could Allow Elevation of Privilege – Important (KB2847927)
Update: Microsoft just posted that Surface RT is getting a firmware update which enhances system performance and reliability. However Surface with Windows 8 Pro doesn’t get one — Microsoft.
Update: The software giant apparently is also releasing a set of five new updates for Windows 8.1 Preview — just six days after the first round of the updates for the preview — to fix several problem in the operating system, Internet Explorer 11, and the Windows Store:
- No notification about the expiration date of Windows 8.1 Preview (KB2863147)
- Smart card PIN disclosure after an automatic restart for Windows Update in Windows 8.1 Preview (KB2865946)
- Internet Explorer 11 Preview freezes or crashes while loading a webpage that contains widgets (KB2866512)
- Can’t view OWA inbox in Internet Explorer 11 Preview (KB2866518)
- Windows Store app instability after an app update in Windows 8.1 Preview (KB2866537)
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Update for Vulnerabilities in Adobe Flash Player in Internet Explorer (KB2857645) for Windows 8.1 Preview, Windows 8, Windows RT, and Windows Server 2012.
Source Security TechCenter
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 14 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 20 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].