Intel : Meltdown, Spectre vulnerabilities to be fixed by end of January

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich has hinted that Intel chips with known

security holes related to Meltdown and Spectre will get the security

fix, adding that the update rollout will be completed by the end of

January, 2018.

The Intel CEO said in a keynote at the CES 2018 in Las Vegas

that Intel chips released in the past five years would be the first

to get the security updates . The company also noted that all

processors will be patched accordingly.

Intel, however, downplayed the concern that users’ data might have

been exploited already. The company said that to date, no reports

of security breaches related to Meltdown and Spectre have emerged.

“ As of now, we have not received any information that these

exploits have been used to obtain customer data. We are working

tirelessly on these issues to ensure it stays that way ,’’

Krzanich said.

Krzanich added that with the security fix rolling out , users will

likely experience performance hits on their systems, the magnitude

of which will depend on workload issues.

He said,“ We believe the performance impact of these updates is highly

workload dependent . Some workloads may experience a larger impact

than others , so we’ll continue working with the industry.”

Ladesope Ladelokun, with Agency report