Microsoft patches record bugs using AI, fixes Age of Empires flaw
Microsoft used artificial intelligence to fix a record number of security flaws on Tuesday, including a remote takeover bug in a classic video game that highlights the growing cyber risks in consumer software.
Microsoft fixed a record number of security vulnerabilities on Tuesday. The company attributed this historic volume of patches primarily to the integration of artificial intelligence, which assisted both internal teams and external researchers in identifying flaws.
This shift toward AI-assisted detection carries significant implications for European businesses. As machine learning tools uncover software weaknesses faster, companies and investors should expect patch cycles to become larger and more frequent. The economic reality is that IT infrastructure costs for managing these continuous, massive security updates will likely increase across industries relying on Microsoft products.
Buried within Tuesday's release was a critical flaw in the remastered version of Age of Empires II, a war strategy game originally released 25 years ago. Security researchers discovered that the bug allowed hackers to seize complete control of a victim’s computer simply by sending a customized, malicious game invite.
Cybersecurity firm Rapid7 analyzed the mechanics of the exploit. According to the firm, a successful attack would have enabled hackers to place malicious files on the targeted machine. This intrusion would have ultimately granted the attacker the ability to run malicious code, effectively taking over the entire computer.
A video posted on X provided a visual demonstration of how this vulnerability could be weaponized. Despite the severe nature of the flaw, there is currently no evidence that hackers ever successfully exploited it in the wild.
However, the existence of such a vulnerability underscores a persistent threat to the digital economy. Targeting video gamers remains a highly effective strategy for cybercriminals looking to install malware across a vast number of computers.
These attacks are frequently used to steal passwords and other sensitive data from victims. For corporate security teams, this proves that even legacy entertainment software can serve as a gateway for serious cybercrime on employee devices.
