One of the updates in the July 2012 Patch Tuesday collection was actually a ‘Fix-It’ that simply disables the ‘Sidebar’ and ‘Gadgets’ features of Windows Vista and Windows 7.

This drastic step was taken by Microsoft to address the general vulnerability of the Sidebar and Gadgets. Anyone who uses these features must choose between a) disabling them; and b) continuing to use them and risking the security of their computer.

The details are in Microsoft Security Advisory 2719662.