Blame, however, does not rest EA but with Microsoft, as a quick Google search of KB917422 brings up many gamers, developers and publishers bitching about the Windows update breaking various games and applications. What have users found is the easiest way to solve the problem? Remove KB917422 or install hotfix KB924867, apparently available by contacting Microsoft directly by calling 800-936-3100.

Even if you simply remove KB917422, you are not opening yourself up to anonymous hackers. This could only happen in two scenarios: "one user running on the machine can force himself to a higher privilege," which means they must have access to your computer locally, or visiting "a specially designed hostile website can force its way to the users privilege, if the user voluntarily performs a sequence of operations." Do either of those sound likely?

For those interested, however, here are the steps to remove KB917422:
1. Go to START | CONTROL PANEL | ADD AND REMOVE PROGRAMS icon.
2. Tick the little box that says SHOW UPDATES.
3. At the bottom of the list of installed programs, look for the update called Security Update for Windows XP (KB917422).
4. Click on it to highlight it and click the REMOVE button.
5. Once the update has been uninstalled, Restart the machine.