On Thursday, Microsoft announced that next week's monthly security update will feature a record-tying 17 bulletins that , 15 more than the previous largest-ever set in October 2010.

While Microsoft does not reveal much information about the upcoming updates in its , the sheer number of critical bulletins that affect Windows -- nine altogether, more than half the total -- likely means that at least one affects the kernel, said Andrew Storms, director of security operations at nCircle Security.

"Although there's not enough to go on from the advance notification, I think one or more kernel patches is a pretty darn good possibility," said Storms. "They've had their problems with the kernel lately."

Of the nine critical Windows bulletins scheduled for next week, seven affect Windows XP, nine affect Vista and eight affect Windows 7.

Microsoft last patched the Windows kernel -- the heart of the operating system -- on February 8, but also fixed kernel flaws in each of 2010's even-numbered months.