Microsoft has confirmed that the KB5120998 mouse reset bug is reverting cursor personalisation settings on Windows 11 systems, with Bleeping Computer reporting that the issue specifically targets non-English Windows 11 installations. For the users caught out, the situation is particularly frustrating: attempts to restore previous cursor settings after the revert are reportedly unsuccessful.
Microsoft acknowledged the problem in a statement, explaining that ‘mouse cursor personalization settings are being changed or reverted to certain standard settings’ following the installation of updates released on 27 August 2026, including KB5120998. The company described the issue as causing ‘appearance regressions and intermittent animation changes,’ with some users finding that high-DPI mouse cursors are replaced with larger, white cursors and custom cursor animations defaulting back to standard ones.
What the KB5120998 mouse reset bug actually does
The update in question, KB5120998, is an optional non-security preview release that shipped with a set of improvements to the Start menu, taskbar, and Windows search for Windows 11 versions 25H2 and 24H2. Because it is optional, most users would only have received it if they manually clicked ‘Download and install’, or if they had the ‘Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available’ setting enabled, which triggers automatic installation.
The non-English angle is the detail that sharpens the picture. According to Bleeping Computer, the KB5120998 mouse reset bug appears to affect machines running Windows 11 in languages other than English, which would explain why reports have come in unevenly and why some users initially struggled to reproduce the problem. Microsoft has not yet confirmed this detail officially, but it is a meaningful distinction for IT administrators deciding whether to push the update across multilingual environments.
The update also carried some welcome baggage: Windows Latest reported that KB5120998 restored Windows 10-era features alongside its Windows 11-specific changes. That context matters because it helps explain why an optional preview update attracted enough installs to surface a widespread cursor regression in the first place: users and administrators who wanted those restored features may have opted in specifically for this update.
Microsoft investigating the root cause
Microsoft says it is still investigating the root cause of the cursor regression and has asked affected customers to file a report through the Feedback Hub. There is no fix or workaround available yet, which leaves users in the uncomfortable position of having installed an optional update that has altered their working environment with no way to reverse the change manually.
The KB5120998 mouse reset bug is not the first cursor-related headache Microsoft has had to manage recently. In October, the company pushed an emergency update to fix a known issue that had disabled USB mice and keyboards in the Windows Recovery Environment, rendering it unusable on affected machines. Separately, Microsoft is investigating a bug that causes the mouse pointer to disappear for some Outlook users when moving it over the interface, a problem that has been present since February.
Taken together, the pattern points to cursor and input handling as an area where Windows updates have repeatedly introduced unintended regressions over the past year. For now, users running non-English Windows 11 systems who have not yet installed KB5120998 have a clear reason to hold off until Microsoft publishes a resolution. Those already affected are directed to the Feedback Hub to help the investigation along.
