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Intel chipsets have another security issue, this time it's 'unfixable'

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Researchers have uncovered a fun new vulnerability in Intel processors, and this one has a claim attached that it's not possible to fix it.Sound familiar? Yeah, there's been a lot of problems over at Intel in the last couple years. We reported on some back in January and it seems it's not getting any better.

This issue, found and reported by Positive Technologies, mentions CVE-2019-0090 which as the numbered year suggests was already announced last year. However, the plot thickens. If you have an Intel chipset and/or SoC older than the 10th Generation (so anything in the last few years), you will be affected by this.

Not something you can get a firmware update or an operating system patch to help with either, since it concerns the Converged Security and Management Engine (CSME). As written by the folks over at Positive Technologies:

We will provide more technical details in a full-length white paper to be published soon. We should point out that when our specialists contacted Intel PSIRT to report the vulnerability, Intel said the company was already aware of it (CVE-2019-0090). Intel understands they cannot fix the vulnerability in the ROM of existing hardware. So they are trying to block all possible exploitation vectors. The patch for CVE-2019-0090 addresses only one potential attack vector, involving the Integrated Sensors Hub (ISH). We think there might be many ways to exploit this vulnerability in ROM. Some of them might require local access; others need physical access.

As you can see, it's not going to be the most practical for people to break into so you don't need to go and wildly panic right this second, since they would need some sort of physical and local access but it's still a damning look for Intel's processor security. To have something so severe that can only be fixed by replacing the entire hardware—ouch.

Do you currently have an Intel CPU and are you considering switching to AMD? Let us know in the comments. AMD aren't entirely secure themselves though, multiple past issues have also affected them.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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Spanner_Man Mar 11, 2020
I previously was an Intel fanboy. When I needed to get an actual desktop (instead of laptop) I went with AMD in Mid October 2019.

It wasn't because of better security or whatever - it was better bang for my buck. As I don't only just play games I also am learning Python and in turn GoDot I need something with some decent grunt to compile. The R9 3900X suited just perfectly.
slaapliedje Mar 11, 2020
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: Purple Library Guy
Quoting: EikeI'm not sure people will get rid of a hungry main process. But fortunately, with Ryzen 3000, the question should be mood. (Is that correct? The question is not important anymore.)
You're very close. "moot"

So close and yet so far... :D

Thanks!
More people should use the word moot. Also some should remain mute. And I still want a castle with a moat.
wvstolzing Mar 11, 2020
Quoting: slaapliedje
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: Purple Library Guy
Quoting: EikeI'm not sure people will get rid of a hungry main process. But fortunately, with Ryzen 3000, the question should be mood. (Is that correct? The question is not important anymore.)
You're very close. "moot"

So close and yet so far... :D

Thanks!
More people should use the word moot. Also some should remain mute. And I still want a castle with a moat.

Funnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.
Eike Mar 11, 2020
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Quoting: wvstolzingFunnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.

The German word "umfahren" means driving around somebody/something or driving over (run over) somebody/something, just depending on the pronunciation. :D
wvstolzing Mar 11, 2020
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: wvstolzingFunnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.

The German word "umfahren" means driving around somebody/something or driving over (run over) somebody/something, just depending on the pronunciation. :D

Yeah, and Hegel famously got a lot of 'mileage' out of the related-but-opposite meanings of 'Aufhebung' -- 'raising up' & 'cancelling'.

Another relevant example is 'versprechen' with the reflexive; w/o the reflexive, it means 'to promise'; with the reflexive, 'to misspeak'. Can be confusing if it's not one's first language.

Actually a pretty annoying difficulty that I still have with German is with words that start with 'ver-'. Where these make verbs out of adjectives, there's no problem; but otherwise, out of habit I associate the words with negative connotations, which is of course often wrong.
slaapliedje Mar 12, 2020
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: wvstolzingFunnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.

The German word "umfahren" means driving around somebody/something or driving over (run over) somebody/something, just depending on the pronunciation. :D
My favorite German word is defenstrate, though after making sure I was spelling it right, Wikipedia informs me it is a French word?
Purple Library Guy Mar 12, 2020
Quoting: slaapliedje
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: wvstolzingFunnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.

The German word "umfahren" means driving around somebody/something or driving over (run over) somebody/something, just depending on the pronunciation. :D
My favorite German word is defenstrate, though after making sure I was spelling it right, Wikipedia informs me it is a French word?
Defenestrate probably comes from French in some way, originally, since the French for window is "fenetre", but it's certainly a word in English. I agree that it's a fun word. I defenestrated my computer ages ago . . .
wvstolzing Mar 12, 2020
Quoting: Purple Library Guy
Quoting: slaapliedje
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: wvstolzingFunnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.

The German word "umfahren" means driving around somebody/something or driving over (run over) somebody/something, just depending on the pronunciation. :D
My favorite German word is defenstrate, though after making sure I was spelling it right, Wikipedia informs me it is a French word?
Defenestrate probably comes from French in some way, originally, since the French for window is "fenetre", but it's certainly a word in English. I agree that it's a fun word. I defenestrated my computer ages ago . . .

The French 'fenêtre' and the German 'Fenster' both have the Latin 'fenestra' as their source.

The word 'defenestrate' probably endures as a tongue in cheek reference to a 'Bohemian' style of starting a war/revolt: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defenestrations_of_Prague
slaapliedje Mar 15, 2020
Quoting: wvstolzing
Quoting: Purple Library Guy
Quoting: slaapliedje
Quoting: Eike
Quoting: wvstolzingFunnily enough, it's one of those English words that have two *related*, but almost opposite meanings. See: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moot

Another such example is 'sanction'.

The German word "umfahren" means driving around somebody/something or driving over (run over) somebody/something, just depending on the pronunciation. :D
My favorite German word is defenstrate, though after making sure I was spelling it right, Wikipedia informs me it is a French word?
Defenestrate probably comes from French in some way, originally, since the French for window is "fenetre", but it's certainly a word in English. I agree that it's a fun word. I defenestrated my computer ages ago . . .

The French 'fenêtre' and the German 'Fenster' both have the Latin 'fenestra' as their source.

The word 'defenestrate' probably endures as a tongue in cheek reference to a 'Bohemian' style of starting a war/revolt: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defenestrations_of_Prague
I first ran into fenster as a word because I was using something in German on my Atari ST and it was saying to move the Window. Legit started to learn some German because so much of the software for that computer in its later life was German only.
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