Intel reaches the center of attention in a negative way after a new Specter type attack was discovered by researchers at the University of Graz, and it is extremely dangerous. We are talking about a Specter attack that allows hackers to steal data from users' computers remotely, without having to run any code on the victim's computer.
The new attack, called NetSpectre, is based on attacking the Internet ports of an operating system with malicious code, the only good part being that an attack of this kind takes a very long time. However, as soon as the hacker gets access to the data, he can extract it, even if he does it for a long period of time, without the victim knowing what is happening with his computer.
Intel: New Extremely DANGEROUS Specter ATTACK
NetSpectre is now available in two versions, one that retrieves data from the CPU cache at a rate of 15 bits per hour, and another that retrieves data at 60 bits per hour. We are talking about extremely low speeds for data transfer, but if we are talking about documents or other small files, they can be extracted in a few tens of hours, the wait being "worth it" for hackers.
"We show that Specter attacks do not require local code execution but can also be mounted remotely. Moreover, with the new covert channel, we show that Specter does not necessarily require the cache to leak values. Luckily, the speed is quite limited, which makes this attack mainly interesting for targeted attacks on high-value targets. If the system is fully patched against Spectre, including the new gadget variants we show in the paper, the attack should be prevented."
This new attack is carried out in four stages by hackers, and the whole procedure is very complex, so it is unlikely that an ordinary user will ever be a victim. However, people of interest to hackers are possible targets, and if there is a clear objective, from which a lot of money can be made, attacks of this kind will be carried out.
