News 

In its regular advance bulletin prior to the monthly 'patch Tuesday', Microsoft says that there will be a total of seven security alerts announced - one for Media Player, four for Windows, one for Windows/Office and one for Office alone.

Alongside the critical vulnerabilities, the company says others are rated the next level as 'important'.

As is Microsoft's normal practice, no further details will be issued prior to the official release of the patches tomorrow.

Microsoft says it also plans to release an updated version of the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool on Windows Update, Microsoft Update, Windows Server Update Services and the Download Centre.

The updated tool is expected to include a method of dealing with the so-called Karma Sutra worm, which caused a great deal of concern earlier this month. While the malware failed to cause the widespread problems that some predicted, the worm is set to go off every 3rd of the month and so still has the potential to cause damage.