Security News

Apple's T2 security chip is insecure and cannot be fixed, a group of security researchers report. Over the past three years, a handful of hackers have delved into the inner workings of the custom silicon, fitted inside recent Macs, and found that they can use an exploit developed for iPhone jailbreaking, checkm8, in conjunction with a memory controller vulnerability known as blackbird, to compromise the T2 on macOS computers.

OpenFive along with AnalogX announced a complete sub-system solution and implementation for Chip-to-Chip interface with ultra-low latency and power. Interlaken IP supports from 1 up to 48 SerDes lanes with up to 112G SerDes rates, providing a scalable interface that offers end-to-end reliability using optional re-transmission and flow control mechanisms.

A researcher is claiming that Apple devices - with a macOS operating system and a T2 security chip - are open to an exploit that could give bad actors root access. The flaw stems from the T2 chip, which is the second-generation version of Apple's chip that provides bolstered security - including securing its Touch ID feature, as well as providing the foundation for encrypted storage and secure boot capabilities.

Hardware video encoders from multiple suppliers contain several critical security bugs that allow a remote unauthenticated miscreant to run arbitrary code on the equipment. Huawei insists the vulnerabilities were not introduced by its HiSilicon chips nor the SDK code it provides to manufacturers that use its components.

A security flaw in a series of IoT connectivity chips could leave billions of industrial, commercial, and medical devices open to attackers. EHS8 modules are built for industrial IoT machines that operate in factories, the energy sector, and medical roles, and are designed to create secure communication channels over 3G and 4G networks.

Security researchers have identified hundreds of vulnerabilities that expose devices with Qualcomm Snapdragon chips to attacks. The proprietary subsystem is licensed for programming to OEMs and a small number of application developers, and the code running on DSP is signed, but the security researchers have identified ways to bypass Qualcomm's signature and run code on DSP. Vendors can build software for DSP using the Hexagon SDK, and serious security flaws in the development kit itself have resulted in hundreds of vulnerabilities being introduced in code from Qualcomm and partner vendors.

The Kr00k vulnerability disclosed earlier this has only been found to impact devices using Wi-Fi chips from Broadcom and Cypress, but researchers revealed this week that similar flaws have been discovered in chips made by Qualcomm and MediaTek. While Wi-Fi chips from Qualcomm, Ralink, Realtek and MediaTek are not vulnerable to Kr00k attacks, ESET researchers discovered that they are affected by similar flaws.

Vulnerabilities were found in a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip that could let attackers obtain photos, videos, call recordings, and other data on Android phones, says Check Point Research. A new report by cyber threat intelligence provider Check Point Research explains how vulnerabilities found in a chip in many Android phones could allow hackers to spy on users.

A recent series of malware attacks on U.S.-based merchants suggest thieves are exploiting weaknesses in how certain financial institutions have implemented the technology to sidestep key chip card security features and effectively create usable, counterfeit cards. Virtually all chip-based cards still have much of the same data that's stored in the chip encoded on a magnetic stripe on the back of the card.

Siemens this week announced that it is acquiring UltraSoC Technologies, a provider of embedded analytics and monitoring solutions for systems-on-chip. Founded in 2006 and based in Cambridge, UK, UltraSoC delivers instrumentation and analytics solutions embedding monitoring, cybersecurity and functional safety capabilities into core SoC hardware.