Microsoft shelves patch, asks customers to uninstall, after error discovered

Microsoft is advising Windows customers to uninstall one of the patches it released this week after discovering that applying the update could prevent machines and applications from properly restarting and loading.

In addition, the software giant has stopped offering the patch, described in bulletin MS013-036, from its Download Center. The fix, part of Microsoft's monthly security upgrade, corrects three privately reported vulnerabilities in the Kernel-Mode Driver, which, if exploited by attackers, could grant them elevated privileges.

"We've determined that the update, when paired with certain third-party software, can cause system errors," said a blog post issued Thursday evening by the Microsoft Security Response Center.

A "Knowledge Base" troubleshooting article from Microsoft implies that the issue is only affecting Windows 7 users. The article also said that the error could cause Kaspersky anti-virus products for Windows to stop functioning.

Citing media reports, Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at security firm Sophos, said the problem appears to be particularly affecting computers in Brazil, which, he wrote in a Friday blog post, "have been particularly badly hit – with machines continually rebooting."