Worried about protecting yourself from the security exploit that is Spectre? Well if you already downloaded Intel’s update patching the flaw, be prepared to download another one soon. Intel’s software fix is the cause of some random rebooting issues users are running into, and the company is urging consumers and manufacturers to hold off on distributing the current update until the update is, uh, updated.
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Intel’s executive vice president Navin Shenoy stated in a press release that the company has identified the cause of the random reboot bug affecting Intel processors built using the Haswell or Broadwell microarchitecture, and is working with manufacturers to properly test and distribute the new patch. “We recommend that OEMs, cloud service providers, system manufacturers, software vendors and end users stop deployment of current versions, as they may introduce higher than expected reboots and other unpredictable system behaviour,” Shenoy said. In short, don’t update your computer just yet, and follow the instructions presented by your manufacturer before you start tinkering with your BIOS.
While it’s good to know they’re working on a fix, this still leaves users with a difficult decision: Download the buggy patch and hope you aren’t affected, or continue to use your potentially compromised computer. You should, at least for now, opt for the latter. If you haven’t taken the time to check if your computer is affected by the processor-focused Spectre and Meltdown security flaws, you might as well wait a little longer.
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