Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

Windows has a print vulnerability that hackers are actively using

By

Microsoft has updated its documentation around the “PrintNightmare” vulnerability that is impacting Windows PCs across the world. The company now says it is aware of the issue, which officially involves cases where the Windows Print Spooler service may perform privileged file operations and allow hackers into your device.

Though it’s not clear if all versions of Windows are impacted by this vulnerability, Microsoft says that the print spooler code that has the vulnerability is in all versions of Windows. The print spooler is what usually handles print jobs in Windows. Specifically, hackers can exploit that code to run arbitrary code with system privileges.

Recommended Videos

This can then be used to install programs, view, change, or delete data, or create new accounts with full user rights. Microsoft’s documentation makes it clear that the vulnerability has also been actively exploited, which means it is out in the wild and in use by hackers.

As a result, Microsoft is investigating if all versions of Windows are exploitable. If you’re worried, Microsoft urges uses who are concerned to stay tuned to a support page for updates. Microsoft also mentions that the vulnerability originated before this month’s June 2021 security update. It’s not clear if the update can patch this vulnerability, but it is still best to install the June 8 security updates just to be safe.

There are some workarounds for this matter, but most are up to system administrators to enable. The first workaround is to disable the print spooler service using Powershell. However, this might end up disabling the ability to print from a PC as well as through the network. A second temporary fix involves using Group Policy to disable remote printing, which will actually prevent the remote aspect of the vulnerability by preventing inbound remote printing operations. The U.S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency also recommends following these steps as well.

It’s not very uncommon for hackers to try and target printers and the printing service in Windows. Back in 2018, hackers were able to use old-school printers to invade home networks. PewDiePie supporters also hacked printers at the end of 2018 to send out messages of support for the YouTuber after a battle with another YouTube channel, T-Series.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Arif Bacchus
Arif Bacchus
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Arif Bacchus is a native New Yorker and a fan of all things technology. Arif works as a freelance writer at Digital Trends…
The next big Windows 11 update has a new hardware requirement
Windows 11 device sitting on a stool.

Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 11 24H2 update is expected to arrive with yet another hardware requirement. Centered around SSE4.2 or Streaming SIMD Extensions 4.2, a crucial component for modern processors, the new Windows 11 24H2 with build 26080 will only boot on CPUs that support the instruction set.

This information comes from Bob Pony on X (previously known as Twitter), following earlier reports in February where he claimed that CPUs lacking support for the POPCNT instruction were no longer compatible with Windows 11. The updated requirement is essentially the same, except that they now mandate the entire SSE 4.2 instruction set instead of just the POPCNT instruction within it, as was previously required.

Read more
You’re going to hate the latest change to Windows 11
A laptop running Windows 11.

Just two weeks after rolling out a preview build to Windows Insiders, Microsoft is pushing out an update to Windows 11 that adds advertisements to the Start menu. Build KB5036980, which is now slowly rolling out to the wider Windows 11 user base, includes recommendations in the Start menu, and they sneakily sit beside your real apps.

These apps comes exclusively from the Microsoft store, and they sit in the Recommended section of the Start menu. This section includes recently used, frequent, and new apps, but one (or more) slots will now be dedicated to an ad. As the update reads: "The Recommended section of the Start menu will show some Microsoft Store apps. These apps come from a small set of curated developers. This will help you to discover some of the great apps that are available."

Read more
The most common Windows 11 problems and how to fix them
Person using Windows 11 laptop on their lap by the window.

With Windows 10 officially losing support next year, Windows 11 is poised to take over as the dominant operating system. Many users have already switched over to the latest Microsoft OS – and while it's not perfect, most are finding it to be a nice step forward from Windows 10. Of course, there are a few quirks people will have to get used to, but most of the bugs and technical issues have already been ironed out.

That's not to say Windows 11 is perfect. In fact, there are still a handful of common Windows 11 problems that people are encountering, including ones that cause no sound to play, network connections to be laggy, and games to run at less-than-optimal speeds. Thankfully, many of these issues are easy to resolve without extensive troubleshooting or the need to contact customer support.

Read more