Major Security Flaw Found In Windows 10

In Washington, the National Security Agency (NSA) discovered a major flaw in Microsoft’s Windows operating system.

The flaw could potentially expose computer users to significant breaches or surveillance, and according to people familiar with the matter, the NSA alerted the firm to it instead of weaponizing it for a hacking weapon.

‘Big kudos to NSA for voluntarily disclosing to Microsoft,’ computer security expert Dmitri Alperovitch tweeted on Tuesday morning.

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

‘This is the type of [vulnerability] I am sure the [NSA hackers] would have loved to use for years to come.’

The disclosure symbolises a major transition in NSA’s approach, prioritising computer security ahead of developing an arsenal of hacking tools designed to enable them to spy on adversaries, anonymous people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.

Microsoft planned to issue a patch for the security flaw the same day it was discovered, the individuals said.

(AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

The vulnerability was essentially a mistake in the computer coding and affects the Windows 10 operating system – the most popular system used today.

The flaw has been likened to the less severe Microsoft security flaw the NSA weaponised into a hacking tool dubbed the ‘EternalBlue’ in 2017.

Microsoft has declined to comment on this story.