Microsoft Warns of Five ‘Critical’ Security Flaws

Microsoft Corp. warned of five “critical” security flaws in its Windows, Internet Explorer, Word and Messenger software programs, saying the flaws could allow attackers to take control of a personal computer.

The company issued software patches to fix the problems as part of its monthly security bulletin.

Computer security experts urged users to download and install the patches, available at www.microsoft.com/security.

In addition, Microsoft issued a warning about a flaw affecting its Exchange Server software, used on networked computers to manage e-mail traffic.