Researchers from Google, academia and cybersecurity firms discovered two flaws in computer chips that affect nearly all modern computers:
Meltdown
This is a flaw that affects laptops, desktop computers and internet servers with Intel chips.
It lets hackers bypass the hardware barrier between applications run by users and the computer’s kernel memory.
This has the potential to let hackers access the content of this portion of a computer’s memory.
This would enable them to steal data, such as passwords saved in web browsers.
Spectre
This bug affects chips from Intel, AMD and ARM and lets hackers potentially trick otherwise error-free applications into giving up secret information.
‘Spectre’ affects chips in smartphones and tablets, as well as computer chips from Intel and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
Hackers can trick apps into leaking sensitive information.
Spectre is a broader bug that applies to nearly all computing devices.
It is harder for hackers to take advantage of but less easily patched and will be a bigger problem in the long term, experts say.