This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42553818
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 0 | Version 1 |
---|---|
Major flaw in millions of Intel chips revealed | Major flaw in millions of Intel chips revealed |
(35 minutes later) | |
A serious flaw in the design of Intel's chips will require Microsoft, Linux and Apple to update operating systems for computers around the world. | A serious flaw in the design of Intel's chips will require Microsoft, Linux and Apple to update operating systems for computers around the world. |
Intel has not yet released the details of the vulnerability, but it is believed to affect chips in millions of computers from the last decade. | |
The UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said it was aware of the issue and that patches were being produced. | The UK's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said it was aware of the issue and that patches were being produced. |
Some experts said a software fix could slow down computers. | Some experts said a software fix could slow down computers. |
"We are aware of reports about a potential flaw affecting some computer processors. At this stage there is no evidence of any malicious exploitation and patches are being produced for the major platforms," the NCSC said in a statement. | "We are aware of reports about a potential flaw affecting some computer processors. At this stage there is no evidence of any malicious exploitation and patches are being produced for the major platforms," the NCSC said in a statement. |
"The NCSC advises that all organisations and home users continue to protect their systems from threats by installing patches as soon as they become available." | "The NCSC advises that all organisations and home users continue to protect their systems from threats by installing patches as soon as they become available." |
The bug could allow malicious programs to read the contents of the so-called kernel memory of computers, which can include passwords and login keys. | The bug could allow malicious programs to read the contents of the so-called kernel memory of computers, which can include passwords and login keys. |
It is also likely to affect major cloud computing platforms such as Amazon, Microsoft Azure and Google, according to The, which broke news of the flaw. | |
The effects of the updates to Linux and Windows could incur a performance slowdown of between five and 30 percent, experts said. It would involve separating the so-called kernel memory from other processes. | |
Experts advised caution on the issue. | Experts advised caution on the issue. |
"It is significant but whether it will be exploited widely is another matter," said Prof Alan Woodward, from the University of Surrey. | "It is significant but whether it will be exploited widely is another matter," said Prof Alan Woodward, from the University of Surrey. |
"The actual flaw is being rather tightly kept under wraps but from what researchers have gleaned themselves, it's all to do with a flaw in the way certain Intel CPUs address certain types of memory. | "The actual flaw is being rather tightly kept under wraps but from what researchers have gleaned themselves, it's all to do with a flaw in the way certain Intel CPUs address certain types of memory. |
"If it is really bad then it may allow an exploit to read parts of the computer memory that should never be reached." | "If it is really bad then it may allow an exploit to read parts of the computer memory that should never be reached." |
Intel did not respond to requests for comment. | Intel did not respond to requests for comment. |
The semi-conductor's chips power many of the world's computers. Rival AMD told The Register that its chips were not affected. |