[121897] in cryptography@c2.net mail archive
Just update the microcode (was: Re: defending against evil in all
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (John Ioannidis)
Mon Apr 28 21:46:32 2008
Date: Mon, 28 Apr 2008 18:16:12 -0400
From: John Ioannidis <ji@tla.org>
To: Cryptography <cryptography@metzdowd.com>
In-Reply-To: <87prs9prsg.fsf@snark.cb.piermont.com>
Intel and AMD processors can have new microcode loaded to them, and this
is usually done by the BIOS. Presumably there is some asymmetric crypto
involved with the processor doing the signature validation.
A major power that makes a good fraction of the world's laptops and
desktops (and hence controls the circuitry and the BIOS, even if they do
not control the chip manufacturing process) would be in a good place to
introduce problems that way, no?
/ji
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