Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET
Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.
ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The February update continues to refresh Secure Boot certificates.
- The update also fixes a number of feature and security glitches.
- Let’s hope this month’s update is less buggy than the one in January.
Another month, another Patch Tuesday rollout from the folks at Microsoft. This month’s roundup tackles several feature and security bugs. But just as importantly, it also continues to refresh the expiring Secure Boot certificates to ensure that your PC remains protected against bootkit malware.
Secure Boot
A security feature that aims to thwart nasty bootkit malware, Secure Boot uses certificates to ensure that only trusted programs run during the boot process. With many of those certificates due to expire in June, Microsoft needs to update them on most Windows PCs. This process started with the January Patch Tuesday rollout and now continues with the one for February.
Also: Your PC’s critical security certificates may be about to expire – how to check
On the client side, the new Secure Boot certificates are designed for both Windows 11 and 10. But those of you still running Windows 10 need to be enrolled in the program for Extended Security Updates (ESU). The ESU ensures that your Windows 10 PC will continue to receive important security updates and patches until October 2026.
Feature fixes
The latest Patch Tuesday updates for Windows 11 and Windows 10 also kick in fixes for some feature bugs. For Windows 11, the update resolves one glitch that affected game playing in full-screen mode and another that prevented some PCs from connecting to certain WPA3‑Personal Wi‑Fi networks.
Also: How to upgrade your ‘incompatible’ Windows 10 PC to Windows 11 – for free
On the Windows 10 front, the latest monthly update addresses issues with Chinese fonts, with certain graphics processing units, and with custom folder names in File Explorer. Also fixed was a bug introduced with the January update that caused some Secure Launch-compatible PCs to restart instead of shutting down or hibernating.
Security fixes
No Patch Tuesday update would be complete without the usual security patches. Here, the number of fixes was dramatically lower than in January — only 55 fixes compared with a whopping 114 last month. Though only two of this month’s security vulnerabilities were rated as critical, six out of the 55 were zero-day bugs, turning this into a more urgent update, according to patch management provider Action1.
Also: Microsoft and ServiceNow’s exploitable agents reveal a growing – and preventable – AI security crisis
One vulnerability already exploited in the wild could allow an attacker to gain System privileges on affected Windows systems. Another one that’s been exploited in the wild could affect network connectivity on your PC. With a third vulnerability also detected in real-world attacks, a hacker could disable security controls and access sensitive data. All of this means that the February update is an important one.
Update your PC
To update your Windows 11 PC, head to System, select Windows Update, and then click the button to check for updates. On Windows 10, go to System, select Update & Security, choose Windows Update, and then check for the latest updates.
So with all these bug patches, does this mean you should install the February update ASAP? Normally, I’d say yes. However, Microsoft has been wreaking havoc lately with its buggy updates. The January Patch Tuesday update was a glitchy mess, introducing a host of bugs that forced Microsoft to issue two emergency patches in response.
Also: Missing emails? Exchange Online is tagging legitimate messages as spam – here’s what to do
If you’re concerned about the security vulnerabilities and other bugs fixed in this month’s update, then you should install it as soon as possible. But if you could possibly wait, I’d suggest holding off for a couple of days to make sure the February rollout is more stable and reliable than the one in January.
If you do install the update, know that you can always uninstall it should it prove to be another buggy mess. Clearly, though, Microsoft needs to focus more on quality control for its monthly updates to ensure that they fix bugs rather than create more of them.
