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Intel, Microsoft Deal With Widespread Computer-Chip Weakness

January 4, 2018 by  
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The world’s biggest chipmakers and software companies, including Intel Corp. and Microsoft Corp., are coming to grips with a vulnerability that leaves vast numbers of computers and smartphones susceptible to hacking and performance slowdowns.

Google researchers recently discovered that a feature, present in almost all of the billions of processors that run computers and phones around the world, could give cyberattackers unauthorized access to sensitive data — and whose remedy could drag on device performance. News of the weakness, found last year and reported Tuesday by The Register technology blog, weighed on shares of Intel, the biggest semiconductor maker, while boosting rivals including Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Intel’s silence for most of Wednesday added to investors’ unease.

Late in the day, Intel, Microsoft, Google and other tech bellwethers issued statements aimed at reassuring customers and shareholders. Intel said its chips weren’t the only ones affected and predicted no material effect on its business, while Microsoft, the largest software maker, said it released a security update to protect users of devices running Intel and other chips. Google, which said the issue affects Intel, AMD and ARM Holdings Plc chips, noted that it updated most of its systems and products with protections from attack. Amazon.com Inc., whose AWS is No. 1 in cloud computing, said most of its affected servers have already been secured.

Hackers for decades have exploited security holes in software — for example, by inducing careless, unsuspecting users to open attachments that unleash viruses or other malware onto a device or network. The weakness uncovered by Google, by contrast, underscores the potential damage wreaked by vulnerabilities in hardware. Complex components, such as microprocessors, can be harder to fix and take longer to design from scratch if flawed.

“It’s a big one and it’s a severe one. This gives an attacker capabilities that bypass the common operating system security controls that we’ve relied on for 20 years,” said Jeff Pollard, an analyst at Forrester Research. “There’s big impact on both the consumer and enterprise.”

Read more: What You Need to Know About the Big Chip Security Problem

Intel’s stock remained under pressure even after its statement.

“We struggle to believe that Intel won’t face some sort of financial liability,” analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein wrote in a note.

China’s largest cloud computing services scrambled Thursday to address the issue. Domestic industry leader Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. said it planned to update its systems from 1 a.m. on Jan. 12 to handle potential chip security issues. Rival Tencent Holdings Ltd. said it was in touch with Intel on possible fixes but wasn’t aware of any attempted attacks.