It does mean that any secondhand computer or CPU (or even CPU from a sketchy source) could be compromised prior to being physically sold.
It’s worse than that, any AMD chip from any source except maybe AMD directly is suspect. Mine is a few years old from Amazon supposedly new, for all I know it came compromised and is sitting there doing what I tell it to until it triggers and I won’t even know when or if it happens.
It’s not going to be there because if you’re compromised via physical access, no one is going to give a shit about this exploit… it’s like someone having the keys to your house and then being worried they’re going to smash out a window to gain access.
Exactly, if I were a bad actor with access to the stock that’s what I’d do. I’m sure there are multiple points along the supply chain where it could potentially happen.
That’s true, seems like you’d need to know where they’re going though, like a ton of work just to hopefully get one machine infected that has anything on it.
If I understand it correctly, the chip has the vulnerability, but the malware would be installed on the motherboard in the form of a bootkit. So getting a used CPU is not a threat, but getting a used motherboard is (and kind of always has been) a risk.
CPU firmware exploits are incredibly rare, if there even are any that exist beyond proof-of-concept. The chances of getting an infected CPU from this is so unlikely it’s practically impossible.
Which, again, is an incredibly unlikely attack vector unless you have some government secrets on your computer. And chances are that any attack through the IME or PSP is trying to do an implant into the UEFI/BIOS and not the processor itself.
It’s worse than that, any AMD chip from any source except maybe AMD directly is suspect. Mine is a few years old from Amazon supposedly new, for all I know it came compromised and is sitting there doing what I tell it to until it triggers and I won’t even know when or if it happens.
That’s not how this exploit works at all…you have to have physical access to the machine basically. This is a nothing burger.
That’s to get it installed, not if it’s already there.
It’s not going to be there because if you’re compromised via physical access, no one is going to give a shit about this exploit… it’s like someone having the keys to your house and then being worried they’re going to smash out a window to gain access.
I don’t think you’re following along here. The physical access would have already happened prior to the CPU even being in my possession.
I see what you’re saying. You’re assuming someone grabbed a bunch of cpus, fucked with them, then tossed them back into the box and sold them as new.
Exactly, if I were a bad actor with access to the stock that’s what I’d do. I’m sure there are multiple points along the supply chain where it could potentially happen.
That’s true, seems like you’d need to know where they’re going though, like a ton of work just to hopefully get one machine infected that has anything on it.
If I understand it correctly, the chip has the vulnerability, but the malware would be installed on the motherboard in the form of a bootkit. So getting a used CPU is not a threat, but getting a used motherboard is (and kind of always has been) a risk.
It allows for adulteration of firmware, the CPU has firmware. 🤷
CPU firmware exploits are incredibly rare, if there even are any that exist beyond proof-of-concept. The chances of getting an infected CPU from this is so unlikely it’s practically impossible.
You forget that the CPU has a nanny CPU built in these days.
Which, again, is an incredibly unlikely attack vector unless you have some government secrets on your computer. And chances are that any attack through the IME or PSP is trying to do an implant into the UEFI/BIOS and not the processor itself.