• A recent update introduced a new bug affecting pasting in Excel
• Excel 2016 just got a hotfix, but Microsoft admits issues can persist
• Temporary workaround is available by selecting 'Paste Special'

Although a recent Microsoft Excel security update brought with it a highly annoying bug impacting copying and pasting functionalities across the spreadsheet software, it's already issued a partial fix.

Just days after the glitch was introduced with a September 8 2026 security update (KB5002914), the company has released a hot fix rather than forcing users to wait until the next cycle.

But this fix in particular only applies to Excel 2016, which is unlikely to have as much reach and global usage as Microsoft 365 versions of the app, therefore many users won't even have been aware of the issue.

Excel just got an important new fix

Other non-365 versions of Excel were also impacted. "In Microsoft Excel 2024, 2021, 2019, and 2016, as well as Excel Online in Office Online Server, the paste operation might fail silently," the company explained in a status update.

"Although users try to paste content, the source remains selected and the destination is unmodified," the update reads, confirming that users didn't receive an error message or sound to let them know of the failure.

Office LTSC 2021 and 2024 are officially fixed, Microsoft confirmed, but a only a mitigation is available for Office LTSC 2019 and Office 2016, so users may still experience some problems.

Thankfully, while a full fix is in the works, Microsoft offered up a pretty simple workaround. Pasting 'Special' from the Home tab is all it takes, with conditional formatting apparently causing headaches for now.

• Canva ProSuite connects Affinity, Cavalry, Flourish, and Leonardo into one ecosystem
• Affinity and Cavalry stay free as ProSuite gains over 100 additions
• Scene Decomposition uses AI to split flattened pictures into separate editable components

Canva is giving Affinity a major set of upgrades as it tries to make its professional creative tools more useful against established competitors.

The free software now adds photography, design, automation and file compatibility features alongside deeper connections with Cavalry, Canva and other creative products.

The changes form part of Canva ProSuite, which brings Affinity, Cavalry, Flourish and Leonardo together while keeping Affinity and Cavalry available without payment.

Affinity gets a major photography and design update

The photography changes are particularly extensive, adding batch importing and an improved RAW processing system for users handling large collections.

Preset looks can now be applied across multiple images, while new correction tools address mixed illumination and camera movement during editing.

Scene Decomposition uses AI to separate flattened pictures into editable components, allowing photographers to modify individual elements without rebuilding images manually.

A dedicated Astrophotography Studio adds specialized controls for photographers working with night skies and astronomical subjects during detailed image processing.

Affinity is also expanding the range of files it can handle, including support for bringing InDesign documents directly into the application.

The company says this gives users access to major industry file formats while reducing obstacles when moving projects between different creative applications.

Integration with Canva Brand Kit and Canva Sheets also adds a route for connecting design work with brand assets and structured information.

Other additions cover vector editing, typography, brushes, noise reduction, high dynamic range processing and export controls, giving professional users more options.

Sony ARW6 support, OpenColorIO display emulation, and improved output matching also extend Affinity's capabilities for photography and color-managed production workflows.

The release includes more than 60 Affinity additions, while Canva says ProSuite brings over 100 additions and changes across its connected products this year.

Canva connects Affinity with motion and AI tools

Canva is also connecting Affinity with Cavalry, its software for creating motion graphics and animations, as part of the new ProSuite.

Cavalry receives more than 50 changes, including new shape controls, lighting effects, graph editing improvements, and expanded SVG handling for motion designers.

The integration lets selected elements within Cavalry projects become editable inside Canva, while keeping the underlying animation protected.

This arrangement could allow teams to make limited changes without repeatedly sending modification requests back to motion designers and animators across team workflows.

Affinity and Cavalry can also connect with AI assistants through ProSuite's AI Connectors, allowing repetitive operations to be handled from natural-language instructions.

“We're genuinely excited to be releasing such a huge swathe of new tools for professional designers, animators, photographers and other advanced users,” said Duncan Clark, CEO of Pro Design at Canva.

“We asked professionals what they actually needed to power their creative work…there’s a lot of noise right now about AI replacing human creatives, but we believe professional craft matters more than ever. We want the Canva ProSuite to be where that craft lives and thrives.”

Affinity's new features, the Cavalry improvements and tighter connections across Canva's products give the free software a significantly larger professional toolkit.