Microsoft releases update to fix screenshot editing vulnerability

SAN FRANCISCO: Microsoft has released an update to fix a screenshot editing vulnerability in Windows 10 and 11 that allows threat actors to recover modified screenshot sections.

The security issue -- called the "aCropalypse" -- could allow threat actors to recover the modified portions of screenshots, potentially disclosing sensitive information that had been cropped out or masked, according to The Verge.

The issue affects both the Snip & Sketch application on Windows 10 and the Snipping Tool on Windows 11, according to Microsoft.

It does, however, only apply to photographs made using a very precise set of processes, including those that have been taken, saved, edited, and then saved over the original file, as well as the ones opened in the Snipping Tool, edited, and then saved to the same location, the report said.

Moreover, the security flaw has no effect on screenshots that have been updated before saving them, and it also has no effect on screenshots that have been copied and pasted into, for instance, the body of an email or document.

Microsoft first learned about the issue last week.

The report further mentioned that the security flaw also allowed hackers to undo changes made to screenshots, allowing them to show personal information in an image that someone thought they were hiding by cropping it out or scribbling over it.

The latest updates for the affected apps can be downloaded from the Microsoft Store by clicking Library, then clicking Get updates.