Patch Tuesday to Tackle 3 'Critical' Bugs

Microsoft plans to fix at least three Windows vulnerabilities it rates as "critical" when it releases its regular Patch Tuesday bug-fix drop next week, the company said.

This time, none of the security holes affect Microsoft Windows 7 as they did last month, although one of them does impact Windows Server 2008, which shares a majority of its code with the new desktop operating system. Windows 7 had its official consumer launch on Oct. 22.

Also on the list for next week will be two patches for Microsoft Office, but the bugs those patches address are only rated as "important" — the next-highest severity rating on Microsoft's four-tiered scale. Of note, two of the patches also affect Office for Mac, including 2008. The three Office patches also impact Windows versions of Office ranging from Office XP to Office 2007.