Microsoft Patch Tuesday Uncovers Critical Windows NTLM and NTFS Vulnerabilities
Microsoft’s September 2025 Patch Tuesday addressed 80 vulnerabilities across its product suite, featuring several critical flaws rated with high exploit potential. Central among these were a privilege escalation vulnerability in NTLM and a remote code execution bug in NTFS, both marked as “Exploitation More Likely” and demonstrating ongoing risk within Windows’ core subsystems.
NTLM Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability (CVE-2025-54918)
The NTLM protocol, which authenticates user credentials over Windows networks, was found vulnerable to a critical Elevation of Privilege (EoP) flaw (CVE-2025-54918) with a CVSSv3 score of 8.8. If exploited, the attacker could stealthily escalate privileges from any authenticated account to SYSTEM, granting full administrative control. This marks the third time in 2025—preceded by patches in January and August—that NTLM has been targeted, indicating persistent attacker interest and recurring challenges in securing this authentication mechanism. The recurrence stresses the protocol’s foundational exposure and the requirement for continuous monitoring and hardening.
NTFS Remote Code Execution Vulnerability (CVE-2025-54916)
Microsoft’s New Technology File System (NTFS) faced a significant remote code execution (RCE) risk, tracked as CVE-2025-54916, with a CVSSv3 score of 7.8. Differing from prior NTFS vulnerabilities, primarily related to privilege elevation or disclosure, this RCE flaw enables any authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code on a target system. Notably, this is only the second NTFS RCE vulnerability since 2022, with the previous one patched in March 2025 revealed as a zero-day exploited in the wild. The technical risk centers on attackers leveraging weak file system permissions or manipulation within NTFS structures, potentially planting and triggering executable payloads on compromised endpoints.
Patch Highlights and Strategic Recommendations
The vulnerabilities patched this cycle underscore the importance of rapid administrative action to apply updates, especially on systems handling sensitive credentials or exposed through enterprise shares. Organizations should audit NTLM usage across applications and restrict NTFS permissions to trusted users, while monitoring for unusual system or account activity. Adoption of security baselines for authentication and file systems remains a strategic imperative.
Chrome Critical Use-After-Free Exploit Patched by Google
Google resolved a critical use-after-free vulnerability in Chrome—potentially allowing attackers to achieve code execution in the browser context. The vulnerability’s technical complexity and exploitation risk underscore the urgency of browser patch cadence and session isolation for all users.
Technical Breakdown of the Flaw
Use-after-free vulnerabilities occur when a program continues using memory after it has been freed, enabling threat actors to corrupt that memory and inject malicious payloads. In Chrome’s case, this bug allowed remote websites to manipulate browser memory structures, resulting in code execution under the user profile. Attackers may exploit such flaws for silent drive-by compromises or second-stage intrusions targeting local networks and data stores.
Mitigation and Strategic Browser Security
Users are advised to update Chrome immediately, as patches for memory management bugs typically arrive within hours of disclosure but remain vulnerable until installed. Enterprises should monitor browser version distributions, enforce timely updates, and consider additional containerization strategies to limit exposure to web-based threats. Regular review of browser plug-ins and applets is recommended to remove stale and exploited extensions.
Active Android Exploitation: September 2025 Security Bulletin
Google’s latest Android security bulletin announced the discovery and ongoing exploitation of two major vulnerabilities—tracked as CVE-2025-38352 and an as-yet unrevealed second identifier—affecting multiple device models.
Vulnerability Details and Exploitation Paths
Both vulnerabilities enable attackers to bypass sandboxing and escalate privileges to read or manipulate user data, install payloads, or maintain long-term persistence on affected devices. According to technical disclosures, these bugs operate at the system API level, leveraging permission escalation and memory corruption strategies unspecified in previous Android releases. The flaws are under active attack, primarily targeting devices running unpatched releases and sideloaded applications.
Defensive Actions and Patch Distribution
Device users should apply the September 2025 security update as soon as it becomes available for their handset. Security teams for mobile fleets should enforce update policies and monitor device telemetry for unauthorized app installations or abnormal system behavior. Additionally, organizations are urged to educate end-users about the elevated risks of installing apps outside official stores and to deploy endpoint management for early detection of compromise.
Ransomware Operator Arrested: Large-Scale Campaigns Traced to LockerGoga, MegaCortex, and Nefilim
Law enforcement agencies announced the arrest of Volodymyr Tymoshchuk, allegedly responsible for orchestrating ransomware campaigns against hundreds of organizations, with documented use of LockerGoga, MegaCortex, and Nefilim malware families. The campaigns targeted diverse sectors, combining conventional payload delivery with credential theft and targeted network penetration.
Campaign Tactics and Technical Analysis
The attacker employed sophisticated initial access methods, including exploiting exposed RDP endpoints and leveraging phishing emails to recruit insider access. Once a foothold was obtained, the ransomware payloads encrypted critical business data, followed by extortion demands issued through multi-channel communications. LockerGoga and MegaCortex have previously been associated with destructive operations as well as data exfiltration, while Nefilim is known for its aggressive file leak extortion tactics.
Incident Detection and Recovery Recommendations
Organizations hit by these campaigns faced extensive business disruption and sensitive data loss. In response, incident responders recommend regular review of lateral movement controls, RDP lockdown policies, and continuous credential monitoring. Rapid containment and restoration procedures should be established and regularly exercised, with ransomware-specific backup and recovery implementations prioritized. Sharing of threat intelligence across sectors and reporting incidents to authorities contribute to suppression of further ransomware deployment.
AI-Augmented Phishing Campaigns Accelerate Social Engineering Complexity
The integration of generative AI into phishing operations has markedly increased the sophistication and believability of social engineering. Attackers now leverage AI not only to craft realistic emails but to assemble convincing communication threads, mimicking legitimate business flows to manipulate victims.
Technical Evolution in AI-Driven Attacks
Traditionally, phishing emails contained generic requests or credentials theft attempts. Now, AI can generate reply chains, convincing invoice requests, and dynamic responses tailored to specific targets, often drawing from public social media data to personalize attacks. These tactics have raised success rates and reduced detection by automated filters, as language nuances and formatting match victim expectations.
Enhancing Defenses Against AI-Generated Threats
Defensive strategies should incorporate behavioral monitoring, advanced anomaly detection, and regular end-user cybersecurity training focused on multi-chain phishing and impersonation recognition. Security teams are encouraged to update rulesets frequently, deploy machine learning models for content analysis, and escalate suspicious activities promptly. Collaboration with email gateway providers and inclusion of threat intelligence feeds for emerging AI techniques is recommended.