New Intel Zombieload vulnerability fix turns some Core i7s into Core i5s
Security researchers have uncovered a new system vulnerability within Intel CPUs. Zombieload, as the flaw is unfortunately called, could allow a nefarious hacker person to gain access to sensitive and otherwise private data in what is described as a “Meltdown-type effect.”
The Zombieload flaw, officially known as “Microarchitectural Data Sampling,” or MDS, allows a program to read data that’s being processed by another program that it would not otherwise be permitted or able to gain access to. According to Intel, Zombieload is difficult to exploit and does not explicitly allow a user to leak specific data, rather this is dependent on the other programs running on the exploited machine.
Zombieload attacks are reportedly only possible on Intel CPUs produced during or after 2011, but even if that includes your CPU there’s no need to panic. Most major OS providers have already rolled out patches coinciding with Intel microcode to fix the flaw. The mitigations alone have only a minor impact on performance, but, depending on a user’s workload and security requirements, there’s an argument to be made for disabling SMT, or HyperThreading, entirely.
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