Security breaches of all types seem to be reported almost daily, and they range in scope from ones that affect hundreds of platforms to those that afflict millions. Often these are software problems that developers incorporated in an application, albeit unintentionally (hopefully).
Of course, the hope is that the underlying hardware is secure, but what happens if it isn’t? Answer: Sometimes your hardware can come back to haunt you.
Such is the case for users of Intel’s Active Management Technology (AMT), found in the vPro versions of many of the company’s chips. The problem has been around since about 2008, and it affects the Standard Manageability (ISM) and Small Business Technology (SBT) firmware versions 6 to 11.6. This includes everything from a Nehalem Core i7 to the latest Kaby Lake vPro systems.