Microsoft Windows Deadline: You Need to Update Your PC Before July 4

Updated June 29 with details of a reboot loop impacting some Windows 11 users.

Timing is everything, and that’s especially true for the millions of Microsoft Windows users who need to update their systems as the July 4 deadline approaches.

Just two weeks ago, we saw a patched Windows vulnerability come back to life. While Microsoft had not suggested any known exploits for CVE-2024-26169, security researchers at Symantec thought somewhat differently, with “some evidence” that attackers “compiled a CVE-2024-26169 exploit before applying the patch.”

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And it was only last month that several US government agencies, including CISA and the FBI, collaborated to draft a cybersecurity advisory warning that “Black Basta affiliates have impacted a wide range of businesses and critical infrastructure in North America, Europe and Australia. As of May 2024, Black Basta affiliates have impacted over 500 organizations worldwide. »

Black Basta is a Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) group that has targeted “12 of 16 critical infrastructure sectors,” the agencies said, “including the healthcare and public health (HPH) sector.” But the group’s activities have extended well beyond the public sector, affecting Hyundai, Rheinmetall, Capita and ABB, among others.

Timing is everything. And these stories come together, which is somewhat embarrassing for Microsoft, as Symantec suggested that it was “the Cardinal cybercriminal group (aka Storm-1811, UNC4393), which operates the Black Basta ransomware” that likely exploited the vulnerability of privilege escalation in Microsoft’s Windows Error Reporting service for several weeks before it was fixed in March.

CISA added CVE-2024-26169 to its Catalog of Known Exploit Vulnerabilities (KEV), reporting that it is “known to be used in ransomware campaigns” and requiring all Windows systems to be updated or shut down by July 4. US federal agencies, but CISA says it “strongly urges all organizations to reduce their exposure to cyberattacks by prioritizing timely remediation.”

Black Basta has now generated over $100 million in ransomware payments, so leaving Windows systems unpatched is a gamble no organization should take. All should follow CISA’s July 4 update mandate. Although the specific issue here is less relevant to personal users, update immediately if you haven’t.

Since this article was published, the situation for Windows 11 users has become more complicated due to the spread of reports of an unexpected reboot loop affecting some users installing Windows 11 KB5039302 from June.

Microsoft warned users that “after installing the updates released on June 26, 2024 (KB5039302), some devices may fail to boot,” stating that “affected systems may reboot repeatedly and require recovery operations to to restore normal use.

Don’t let these headlines alarm you and update as usual.

KB5039302 is not a mandatory update in itself and is not a security update. So, put those headlines aside and proceed as normal. Don’t confuse this update with the security patch that addresses the Microsoft Windows Error Reporting service vulnerability. In any case, it’s highly likely that your Windows 11 PC is not affected by the new issue. This reboot loop affects corporate machines running “virtual machine tools and nested virtualization features,” Microsoft said, meaning home users are less likely to be affected. Users will still see relevant updates as they become available.

The issues covered by the CISA advisory were fixed before the June release, and given the Black Basta angle, the urgency remains. And that means that even though Microsoft has pulled KB5039302 for some users, you should still make sure to update your PC before the July 4 deadline.

The much bigger problem affecting Windows home users is fast approaching, although that deadline is still more than a year away, October 14, 2025. Just days before Symantec’s report, we saw Microsoft once again urging Windows 10 users to upgrade to Windows 11. With a discouraging 70% of users yet to make the switch before Windows 11 ends its life next year, this challenge becomes one of more and more acute and reprimands from Microsoft began to affect PCs around the world.

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When Windows 10 reaches end of life, its support also ends. No more security updates for users who don’t want to upgrade or pay new costly annual fees.

And so to all those who refuse Windows 10, whether professional or individual. “It’s time to upgrade your PC before the end of support,” urges Microsoft. “Windows end of support is coming on October 14, 2025. This means that your desktop PC will no longer receive technical support or security updates after this date.”

And that’s just not a risk worth taking, certainly not with Windows.