Last Tuesday, Microsoft dropped an enormous number of seemingly innocuous patches -- seven for .Net running on Windows Embedded, plus 40 separate nonsecurity patches. There's a full list on AskWoody.com.
The next day poster Opskito complained that he was seeing an update on his PC that wasn't included in the list. Identified as KB 3103709, there was no KB article for the patch (which, alas, isn't uncommon). More perplexing, the patch wasn't mentioned on Microsoft's main Windows Update list.
A week later, there's still no KB article and no entry on the Windows Update list. The patch apparently only appears on Windows 8.1 systems and it's Optional, unchecked.
Here's where things get weird.
On the Microsoft Answers forum, in a post enigmatically titled "Is Update KB 3103709 fake?" poster skepticaluser_2016 reported a transcript of a conversation with "Judy D" at Microsoft Tech Support that includes this enlightening exchange:
Skepticaluser_2016: I'm reluctant to install the update since there is no information regarding it on the Microsoft website
Judy D: Okay… Actually this is a free upgrade to everyone. If you are using win 8.1 now, you are one of the qualified to upgrade your PC to windows 10… To check if the update is already installed, go to the Start screen. If you see a Search button near your account name at the top of the Start screen, you already have the update.
Skepticaluser_2016: So this update is the beginning of the install for Windows 10?
Judy D: Yes… The update is gradually rolling out to everyone with a PC running Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1 over a period of several weeks. If you get automatic updates but you don't see the update yet, wait a few days and check again.
Skepticaluser_2016: Ok, thank you. I'm glad I asked. I already went down that road and had to format my computer because Windows 10 made it effectively unusable.
Judy D:That's awesome:)
There's some speculation in the thread that skepticaluser_2016 was, in fact, conversing with a bot (maybe AlphaGo moonlighting?), but the possibilities are frightening -- especially for folks who have been rickrolled by the Get Windows 10 juggernaut.
There's a German-language post from Spike2 on Borncity that says (auto-translated by Google and edited for legibility):
KB 3103709 seems to be an update for Microsoft's Active Directory Services, more precisely "NTDSAI" and "DSPARSE" because it includes changes to Windows 8.1 ntdsai.dll and dsparse.dll… That's what I found out by downloading (without installing) followed by unzipping and viewing the accompanying XML and manifest files.
I had one report about a pop-up appearing on some PCs with KB 3103709 (the description was unclear). If there is a pop-up that refers to KB 3103709 floating around, it most certainly is not a Windows patch.
That's where the trail ends. Have you seen anything reliable about this patch?