Apple has issued eight security updates for the Mac OS X and Windows versions of its QuickTime multimedia software. 

The French Security Incident Response Team issued its most severe security rating of 'critical' for all the flaws. 

All eight vulnerabilities affect current versions of QuickTime for Windows Vista, XP and 2000. Seven also affect Mac OS X versions 10.3.9 and later.

The flaws target the way QuickTime handles certain types of malformed files. When specially-crafted files, including QuickTime, PICT, MIDI and QTIF, are launched, an application crash can be triggered, allowing an attacker to remotely install and execute malware.

"If you use QuickTime I would definitely recommend that you install the update as soon as possible," said SANS security researcher Bojan Zdrnja. "Some of those security vulnerabilities look nasty." 

Users can install the patch through Apple's support website or through the Software Update component built into Mac OS X.

This release is the first QuickTime-specific patch issued by Apple since January, when the company fixed a vulnerability introduced during the Month of Apple Bugs project.