The update, dubbed Security Update 2005-001, affects both the client and server editions of Mac OS X 10.2.8 and Mac OS X 10.3.7, said Apple, and fixes flaws in the Safari Web browser, the Mail component, and the ColorSync component.
According to Danish security firm Secunia, which rated the vulnerabilities as "highly critical," many could be exploited to compromise a Mac computer, insert code remotely to the machine, or delete or read files.
Details on the vulnerabilities and the affected operating systems can be found on the Apple Web site, while updates can be downloaded from Apple manually or retrieved automatically with the OS's Software Update feature.
Apple's new naming method for its updates resembles Microsoft's, which has long tagged its security bulletins with the year -- as in "MS05" -- and numbered them chronologically.