Microsoft has released emergency updates to address a security flaw known as “aCropalypse” found in its native Windows 10 and 11 screenshot editing apps. The flaw was discovered earlier this week and is related to the apps’ ability to properly overwrite cropped PNG data. While the issue did not affect all PNG files, bad actors could potentially exploit it to partially recover edited images, particularly those that had been cropped to omit sensitive information. The vulnerability was addressed by Google in Android’s March security update. Microsoft released public updates for Windows 11’s Snipping Tool and Windows 10’s Snip & Sketch app on Friday. Users can manually prompt the updates by opening the Microsoft Store and selecting “Library” and then “Get Updates.” It is recommended that all users install the updates, though they will not protect images that were previously created using Microsoft’s screenshot tools.
Windows 11 privacy bug fixed by Microsoft for screenshots.
