A few hours ago Intel reported that in the coming weeks they would release a new patch for Zombiload. If you still don't know what this vulnerability is, don't waste time investigating it because we bring you a new one. CacheOut is the new vulnerability found in Intel processors. The new vulnerability affects the processor cache, mainly in the first level.
Meltdown, Specter, Zombiload, and now CacheOut are a significant string of vulnerabilities. Note that all these vulnerabilities cannot be exploited remotely, or are physically or on a local network. But the biggest problem is that the patches cause the processors to have a notable loss of performance.
No products found.
Intel CacheOut, a new vulnerability
CacheOut is how the vulnerability that allows access to data stored in the processor's L1 cache has been baptized. This exploit is called CVE-2020-0549 “L1D Eviction Sampling (L1Des) Leakage”. This vulnerability receives a rating of 6.5 in the CVSS system. It's not the most serious we've seen, even Meltdown and Specter have higher scores.
What this vulnerability allows is to access the cache and steal the processor data. But the most important thing is that it is not done randomly, it can be done selectively with the data that we consider useful.
Thus CacheOut would have a significant impact on hardware-based security standards. It would allow the attack of virtual machines up to SGX enclaves. Note that a virtual machine can share physical space with another user's virtual machine. Explained in a basic way, it would be a bus, we all go inside it, but we are independent entities. The problem is that the L1 cache that stores all the data could be accessed and completely stolen.
After CacheOut became known, Intel has got to work to develop a patch to the problem. They have also requested that operating system developers make the necessary adjustments to patch the problem.
To our knowledge it affects Skylake architecture processors and later. Sandy Bridge, pre-Skylake architecture has not been affected. There is also no evidence that AMD has been affected.
Source: TPU
