Windows Live OneCare randomly expires

Microsoft's Windows support forum found a throng of users yesterday complaining of their Windows Live OneCare subscriptions inexplicably showing up as having been terminated.

This left many scrambling to find out whether OneCare was still providing them with updates, firewall, and antivirus protection, or if Microsoft had forgotten about them.

The forum's moderator sought to deter panicked users from calling tech support, saying that the subscription/profile server/database issue would be corrected within 24 hours. One user who spoke to the call center reported that he received the response, "We cannot confirm that your computer is being protected."

Microsoft Program Manager Kapil Rastogi has posted on the forum that it is a temporary glitch in the billing system affecting only a limited number of subscribers. He says Microsoft will work directly with those affected to correct account status and address interruptions in the OneCare service.