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What are Spectre and Meltdown?
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Spectre and Meltdown are the names of the flaws found in a number of processors from Intel, ARM and AMD that could allow hackers to access passwords, encryption keys and other private information from open applications.
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The flaws, found by a number of people including a member of Google’s Project Zero, are sending shock waves through the IT world. Namely, it was revealed that they had been present in chip designs for over 20 years, and that they affect a number of companies’ processors, meaning the flaws could be found on a huge number of devices, from PCs to web servers and even smartphones.
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So should you be worried?
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So far it doesn’t look like the Spectre or Meltdown flaws have been used in an attack, and device manufacturers are working with Intel, ARM and AMD to fix these flaws.
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Intel has claimed that the exploits can't corrupt, modify or delete data. While it’s good to see companies set aside their differences to find a fix for these flaws, it has emerged that one flaw, Spectre, may need a processor redesign to fix.
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However, this does mean that future processors should be free from the Spectre and Meltdown security flaws. So, don’t be too alarmed, but keep an eye on any updates your device offers, and follow our advice on how to protect against the Meltdown and Spectre CPU security flaws.
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Before making any changes:
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- Make sure that you have full backups of your data
- If you or your customers are using any Antivirus software, you/they should first check compatibility with the software vendor
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How can you/your customers patch these Vulnerabilities?
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We have already patched our Shared/Reseller/Corporate Hosting Servers (Both Linux and Windows). Cloud Hosting and Other dedicated infrastructures will be patched very soon. We are waiting for the new patches and will do as and when required.
However, if you have VPS/Dedicated Server/Cloud Server package(s) with us, please perform the following steps depending on the Operating System installed on your order.
In case of Managed Servers, please reach out to us in case you face any issues while following the provided steps.
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Vulnerabilities of Debian and Ubuntu can be detailed in the following link
Debian : https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2017-5753
Ubuntu : https://wiki.ubuntu.com/SecurityTeam/KnowledgeBase/SpectreAndMeltdown
How to Patch Debian/Ubuntu:
- Update and upgrade your packages using apt-get:
#apt-get update && sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
- You'll need to reboot your server to apply the changes:
#reboot
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Vulnerabilities from Redhat can be found at https://access.redhat.com/security/vulnerabilities/speculativeexecution
How to Patch Centos/Fedora/RedHat, use either of the two methods mentioned below::
- You can initiate a full yum update using the below command:
#yum update
- Just update the kernel packages:
#yum update "kernel*"
You'll need to reboot your server to apply the changes:
#reboot
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Vulnerability details can be found from https://support.microsoft.com/en-in/help/4072698/windows-server-guidance-to-protect-against-the-speculative-execution
How to Patch Windows:
- Apply the latest Windows update available
- Enable mitigations in your registry
- Apply a microcode firmware update for your CPU
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Please Note: Applying the patches may have a negative impact on overall performance.
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Steps 1 and 2 are documented on Microsoft's website.
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Due to the way this vulnerability was made public, not all patches and updates may not be currently available.
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