New Vulnerability Hits Microsoft Excel

Just two days after releasing 12 patches to correct 21 security issues in its products, including a critical flaw in Word, Microsoft says it is investigating a report of a new vulnerability affecting Excel, the company's spreadsheet software. So far only one Microsoft customer has been hit by the attack.

"Here's what we know: In order for this attack to be carried out, a user must first open a malicious Excel document that is sent as an email attachment or otherwise provided to them by an attacker," explained Mike Reavey from the Microsoft Security Response Center. Microsoft has updated the Windows Live Safety Center to remove the malware that exploits the security flaw, and says it is sharing information with partners so their software can detect attacks as well.