I don’t usually post this kind of stuff but it is sufficiently important to warrant some attention. According to quotes used at Sunbelt Blog:
"Microsoft Windows WMF graphics rendering engine is affected by a remote code execution vulnerability. The problem presents itself when a user views a malicious WMF formatted file, triggering the vulnerability when the engine attempts to parse the file. The issue may be exploited remotely or by a local attacker. Any code execution that occurs will be with SYSTEM privileges due to the nature of the affected engine. Microsoft Windows XP is considered to be vulnerable at the moment. It is likely that other Windows operating systems are affected as well."
This is a particularly virulent attack that creates mayhem on the desktop. Short of a fix from Microsoft and a possible reformatting of the hard drive, it’s one you need to look out for. Even if you think you’re up to date and not vulnerable you should at least skim read the technical stuff around this. There are links on the Sunbelt Blog site.
I’d recommend thinking about moving away from Internet Explorer and onto Firefox. It’s not so vulnerable to attack, in part because it is a relatively minor player. That doesn’t make it ‘worse’ but a whole lot more secure.
