Tech Shout!

The world’s largest software maker Microsoft has announced that it will not be coming out with its planned monthly software security fixes in the month of March, following a report that stated its security suite ranked last of 17 tested.

In a notice published on its website on Thursday, Microsoft maintained that it will issue several updates but none of them will be related to security.

Termed as ‘Patch Tuesday,’ it is the second Tuesday of each month on which Microsoft releases security patches and repairs for its software.

In the same note, the company noted it will release its monthly update of the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, which seeks out code that matches profiles for harmful or malicious software (malware) and, if any is detected, eliminates it from the infected computer.

In addition, Microsoft also stated that it will release six other “non-security high-priority updates” for its Windows software but did not specify their nature.

Microsoft’s notice comes after an Austrian project found that the Redmond, Wash.-based company’s Windows Live OneCare security suite “did not reach the minimum requirements for participation” in its tests.

In the February 28 report, Andreas Clementi of the AV-Comparatives anti-virus software evaluation project put down, “Its inclusion in future tests of this year [will] have to be re-evaluated.”

Microsoft occasionally has months when it has not released security updates. The last time Microsoft did not offer security updates as part of its monthly update cycle was September 2005, the company said.

Microsoft is presently working on patches for known vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer 7, Office 2007’s Publisher 2007, and the Windows Vista OS, but they are not ready for release at the moment, said a spokesman from Microsoft’s public relations firm Thursday.

“Microsoft continues to investigate potential and existing vulnerabilities in an effort to help protect our customers,” a company representative said. “Creating security updates that effectively and comprehensively fix vulnerabilities is an extensive process involving a series of sequential steps.”

Last month, security researchers in England found that out of 15 security software suites developed for the latest version of Microsoft’s Windows operating system, Vista, Microsoft Live OneCare failed to detect known viruses. Three other security suites, including McAfee VirusScan Enterprise version 8.1i also failed the VB100 test by security information site Virus Bulletin.