How to Protect Yourself From Meltdown and Specter, the Latest Processor Security Flaws
Almost every device you have has a couple of security flaws that could allow hackers to steal information such as passwords and other personal information. The Specter and Meltdown exploits take advantage of real flaws in your device’s microprocessor design. Your computers, smartphones, and other devices could be harmed or slowed down for years, but there are already fixes available from companies to protect themselves, at least in part, from an immediate threat until a long-term solution is determined.
How Specter and Meltdown work
The processor vulnerabilities Meltdown and Specter (the latter are a pair of two similar vulnerabilities) essentially target how processors optimize certain actions, a feature known as “speculative execution.” This vulnerability allows them to see memory (including personal information) inside other programs and services down to the operating system kernel. Your antivirus won’t fix this. The Meltdown flaw mainly affects Intel-based computers like your desktop or MacBook, while the Specter flaw affects AMD and ARM processors. This means that your smartphone is likely also susceptible to a processor malfunction.
How to protect yourself from the crisis
Fortunately, the Meltdown vulnerability is already being patched by companies such as Microsoft and Google. Follow the instructions for your operating system to stay up to date with the latest developments.
Microsoft : Microsoft has already released an update for Windows 10 that fixes the vulnerability, and will soon release fixes for Windows 7 and Windows 8. If you are having problems installing Automatic Security Updates, Microsoft assumes that your antivirus is to blame. If this happens, turn off your antivirus software and use Windows Defender or Microsoft Security Essentials ( or edit the registry if you’re sure you won’t mess it up). If you are using Windows 10 , chances are you either automatically downloaded the update or are planning to update on a set schedule. Advanced users can check to see if they are affected by running the Microsoft validation test at the command line .
Apple : While Apple has yet to comment on the bug, Alex Ionescu , a Windows security expert, noted that the fix is present in the new 10.13.3 update for macOS.
Browsers : Google Chrome , Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft Edge have updated or planned updates to fix the security flaw. You can update Google Chrome to the latest version with patches on January 23rd, or download the latest Firefox update .
Android : According to Google, Android users using the most recent version of the mobile operating system are protected.
How to protect yourself from a ghost
While you can defend yourself against Meltdown, it is more difficult to defend against the more aggressive Specter vulnerability. According to the researchers involved in the detection and reporting of the two exploits, software updates to fix certain flaws in Specter are possible, although they are not yet available, or they can completely eliminate the exploit without changing the operating system and the microprocessor itself.