An unpatched problem with Windows applications is much worse than first thought, with hundreds of programs, not just 40, vulnerable to attack, a Slovenian security company said today.

"It was a shocking surprise," said Mitja Kolsek, CEO of Acros Security. "It appears that most every Windows application has this vulnerability."

Yesterday, American researcher HD Moore announced that he had stumbled upon about 40 Windows applications with a common vulnerability, but he declined to name the programs or go into detail about the bug.

Today, Kolsek said that Acros has been digging into a new class of vulnerabilities for months. It has found more than 200 flawed applications harboring more than 500 separate bugs, he added, noting that the company had reported its findings to Microsoft more than four months ago.

In other words, the problem is much more widespread than Moore suggested on Wednesday.

Full story: Computerworld