By now, you've heard more than you ever wanted to
But anyway... you need to hear more about the critical Intel security flaw known as "Spectre." The flaw is massive in scope and scale, impacting every chip that Intel has released over the past decade, and if exploited, would allow a hacker to take complete control over the vulnerable system. Needless to say, once discovered, the company got to work right away on a fix for the issue.
Unfortunately, there were problems. Whatever form the fix ultimately took, it was going to mean a performance hit to any machine receiving the update. Early estimates were that performance could be degraded by between 17 and 24 percent.
As it turns out
Things were worse than expected. Intel's first attempt at patching the issue can only be described as a catastrophic failure, causing updated systems to spontaneously reboot multiple times a day and ruining performance. The problem got so bad that the company formally recommended not installing the patch and waiting for a better one to be developed.
That better patch is now available, and has been extensively tested to avoid the problems that plagued the release of the first patch. If you're running a machine that uses Intel's sixth, seventh, or eighth generation processor (Kaby Lake, Coffee Lake, or Skylake), or if you're using a machine running an X-series processor, you should have already received the update via OEM firmware push. If not, now is the time to grab it.
Our take
While it's true that we've seen worse bugs and flaws than Spectre, this is as bad as anything we've seen recently. Given how many Intel-based machines there are out there in the wild, the problem posed by Spectre couldn't get much bigger. Don't leave yourself vulnerable.
Thanks for reading this post. For more tips on thriving with small business technology, check out the other blog posts at DWPia Blogs. I am also available at dwpia on LinkedIn, at dwpia on Facebook, and @dwpia on Twitter.
Denis S Wilson
I am President and Principal Consultant for DWP Information Architects: specializing in managed IT support for smaller, fast-growth companies in Greater Los Angeles. And have created cost-effective IT solutions, including managed IT support systems, for small business for over 20 years, specializing in cybersecurity and regulatory compliance. I am also a published author and speaker, working extensively with organizations that include: the State of California, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Small Business Administration (SBA), SCORE, Women's Business Centers, and Small Business Development Centers. As well as providing small business technology education programs to business and professional associations.
Check out this blog:
"Cyber Security Check List That Will Underscore Your Potential Business Risks"
