Oracle database administrators, start your patching engines.

According to the Redwood City, Calif., vendor's Critical Patch Update pre-release announcement, the first quarterly update for 2008 will contain 27 security fixes across hundreds of Oracle products.

[ SEE: Oracle Security Alerts Get Overdue Makeover ]

The patches are expected to ship on January 15, 2008.

Here's the breakdown of patches affecting specific products:

Oracle Database: 8 vulnerabilities
Oracle Application Server: 6 vulnerabilities
Oracle Collaboration Suite: 1 new security fix
Oracle E-Business Suite: 7 new security fixes (three of these flaws may be remotely exploited without authentication)
Oracle Enterprise Manager 1 vulnerability.
Oracle PeopleSoft Enterprise and JD Edwards EnterpriseOne: 4 new security fixes.

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