Microsoft Patch Tuesday Tsunami: No Zero-Days, but an Asterisk

Microsoft's April Patch Tuesday fixes address a record 147 CVEs (155 including third‑party), with three rated Critical and multiple high‑severity issues across Windows components, SQL Server, SmartScreen, Secure Boot, and other products. At least one patched bug (SmartScreen Prompt bypass CVE-2024-29988) has evidence of active exploitation; other notable fixes include RPC remote code execution, Outlook spoofing, and DNS Server RCE. Many SQL Server CVEs involve client-side social engineering requirements that limit large-scale exploitation, while Secure Boot fixes underscore persistent risk to boot-time protections. Security teams are advised to prioritize high‑severity and actively exploited fixes, monitor for anomalous outbound connections and phishing, and quickly deploy relevant patches.