Bad news, folks. It turns out the majority of Intel processors made within the last decade have a massive security flaw, and the fix is gonna slow your computer down.
The company is yet to reveal specific details on the issue, but it’s believed to allow user programs access to protected kernel memory areas. In lesser nerd terms, the kernel is the core of an operating system and contains sensitive information like passwords, login keys, and essential files that run your rig.
It’s such a fuckup, even a small piece of JavaScript running in a web browser can gain access to your PCs important shit. But my friends, it gets worse. The fix for such a vulnerability will take a sizeable chunk of performance from you, the worst case scenario being your computer could run up to 30 percent slower.
Intel is the biggest player in the CPU game, meaning a huge number of computers are running its hardware, whether it’s a Mac or Windows PC.
Microsoft is expected to roll out its patch next week and there’s nothing you can do about it. Some newer models may be immune to the performance drop, or be better able to work around the flaw, but we’ll know more when the specifics are released by Intel.
This sucks colossally for users and the company alike, particularly given their current market share over major competitors, AMD. If you’re planning on building a PC anytime soon, it might be worth holding on to see how the situation pans out. Given AMD’s push into the gaming market, it could be worth considering one of its Ryzen processors over an Intel unit.
Fingers crossed the company can implement a solution with minimal impact on performance. I have PUBG to play for fuck’s sake.
