August 31, 2020
2145
0Leak Of Intel Materials: 20GB Of Secret Documents And Files On The Network
Unknown cybercriminals have publicly released 20 GB of Intel-owned confidential materials, usually distributed to partners on non-disclosure terms. Unfortunately, a very weak password cannot protect some of the materials. And in the source code of one of the firmware, it has been found the word “backdoor”.
It is worth recalling that this company is a world leader producing microprocessors with a capitalization of more than $206 billion. Because of the disclosure of information, not only the company’s reputation and business risk to suffer, but also users: Intel may not have time to release updates for devices with its chips. The company itself denies the leak.
The public was most recently shocked by the news of a large-scale Data Leak of Telegram User Base. If you haven’t heard about it, it’s time to read the article and change the chatting app.
What happened?
Tillie Kottmann, an IT consultant from Switzerland shared information about a large-scale Intel data leak on his Twitter account. According to him, an unknown anonymous hacker provided him with obtained data from the Corporation’s servers.
As evidence, Kottmann provided some of the stolen material for public viewing. The uploaded part of the files with a total volume of more than 20 GB is the first of the upcoming series of major Intel leaks.
There, you can find schematics, technical documentation, and source code for Intel Software.
Tillie Kottmann suggested that the “merged” code may contain “back doors” intentionally built by Intel’s developers. As proof, the user has provided a fragment of program code, which actually includes the word “backdoor” in the comments.
However, the source notes that this fragment is most likely intended to detect and correct memory errors, rather than containing the implementation of a backdoor in the sense of purposefully added vulnerability for subsequent access to the system.
The leaked files contain archives that can only be unpacked if you know the password. Moreover, the used password is extremely unreliable: “Intel123” or “intel123”. According to him, the password was not set by him, and the files got to him in this form.
Another reason for choosing a strong password. Read the article Funny Passwords Ever Hacked and choose only reliable and sophisticated options.
Where did the attackers get the materials?
According to Intel, the “merged” information was most likely taken from the development and design Center (a closed resource library for computer manufacturers).
Access to the center is provided on a non-disclosure basis (NDA) to developers of firmware and motherboards for Intel processors. Representatives of the Corporation believe that someone with access to the center downloaded and then shared it.
Bad year
Experts have dubbed that 2020 is a “black band” for the American tech giant. The company could not cope with the release of 7-nanometer processors on time and survived the departure of Jim Keller — one of its main architects. Moreover, Intel had lost a significant customer in the face of Apple — the latter announced the creation of its processors for the Mac line of computers and plans to abandon the use of Intel processors soon.
2020 may be a fateful year for the largest microelectronics manufacturer: the delay in the release of new processors in July has already plunged shares by 9%. New shocks may also negatively affect Intel’s financial performance.
One more bad news. 15 Billion Stolen Credentials Are Now Traded on The Dark Web. Read about how to protect yourself in the Internet space.
