A Great Time to Catch up on Patches

Recently there have been a number of critical and zero-day vulnerabilities that have been announced in the news across several platforms.  Microsoft announced a patch to a remote code execution vulnerability within internet explorer that achieved a CVSS rating of 8.8 which is significant.  There was also recent news of cyber attackers using SVG files to smuggle the QBOT malware onto Window workstations.  Apple also patched a recently discovered zero-day vulnerability allowing attackers to execute code on iOS devices.

Whether for personal or business use, Apple or Microsoft, or for servers, laptop, mobile devices, or HMIs; this is a great time of year to check for updates and apply any open patches or hotfixes for known vulnerabilities.  As always, it’s a good idea to test any patches in a test or sandbox environment before applying to any production systems to ensure everything works smoothly after patching. 

Lastly, this holiday season has seen an enormous uptick in scams as consumer use of e-commerce services to make holiday purchases soars ever higher.  Be vigilant when on the web and especially if you receive communications from a seller or service you aren’t expecting.  We want everyone to be cyber safe this holiday season!