Microsoft has released its November 2025 security patches, addressing a total of 63 Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) across various areas of the Windows environment. The updates include fixes for Nuance PowerScribe software, Configuration Manager, Microsoft Office Excel, SQL Server, Azure Monitor Agent, Windows Smart Card components, DirectX, and several other applications and services. Many of these vulnerabilities have high base scores on the CVSS scale but are considered difficult to exploit due to specific requirements or conditions needed to trigger them. The patches aim to address multiple issues within Microsoft Office Excel alone, including a few with the highest score so far in this update cycle.
Microsoft November 2025 Security Updates
Microsoft has released this month's security patches. They're tackling a total of 63 Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), which suggests it was quite a busy patch cycle. The fixes span across various corners of the Windows environment.
Some specific examples jump out immediately. Nuance PowerScribe software has a vulnerability tracked as CVE-2025-30398 with a base score of 8.1 on the CVSS scale; that's high severity, but it might not be easy to exploit because you'd need just the right conditions.
Configuration Manager isn't far behind either, handling CVE-2025-47179. This one scores slightly lower at 6.7 base points, yet faces a similar situation in terms of exploitation difficulty due to its specific requirements.
Several issues are hitting Microsoft Office Excel (multiple CVEs mentioned). Among these, two share the highest score for this update cycle so far, both tagged as having CVSS base scores of 7.8 and apparently deemed difficult to exploit based on their prerequisites. Then there's SQL Server's vulnerability, CVE-2025-59499, which gets top marks with an even higher 8.8 score. It's a more critical issue from a technical standpoint, but again, its requirements probably mean it won't be abused easily.
On the other side of things, vulnerabilities in Azure Monitor Agent (tracked as CVE-2025-59504), Windows Smart Card components (CVE-2025-59505), and DirectX itself (CVE-2025-59506) are addressed. These patches seem particularly important because they are not just tagged for future fixes or dependent on very specific conditions to trigger exploitation attempts.
Speaking of Office Excel again, it appears the update covers a few more issues within that application, too. Several more vulnerabilities linked specifically to Excel have been patched, including CVE-2025-60726, CVE-2025-60727, and CVE-2025-62201. Interestingly, these also share the 7.8 base score.
Finally, this comprehensive effort covers other areas like Windows Routing and Remote Access Service (RRAS), drivers related to WinSock, Visual Studio Code CoPilot's Chat Extension feature, and even Microsoft's Wireless Provisioning System. Often enough, the description points towards "exploitation unlikelihoods" or scenarios where exploitability is considered less likely due to system requirements.
Security Update Guide - Microsoft Security Response Center
