In no instance will Microsoft issue an advisory on someone else's software without first contacting and coordinating work with the other vendor, Reavey stressed.

Microsoft follows the same practice for flaws its researchers find in the company's own software, pointed out Andrew Storms, director of security operations for nCircle Security.

Storms applauded the move, largely because of his high opinion on the advisories the company produces for its own code. Microsoft's advisories are much more thorough than those from most rivals, he said, and more easily digestible.

This isn't a sudden shift, said Storms. "Back in 2008 at [the] Black Hat [security conference], Microsoft said they were interested in finding vulnerabilities in the entire Windows ecosystem. It took them three years to get it going," he said.

its Microsoft Vulnerability Research (MSVR) program in August 2008, saying then that its security researchers would report bugs they found to third-party developers, and coordinate with those vendors to make sure details did not go public before a patch was in place.