Hackers can make computers destroy their own chips with electricity
A feature of server motherboards intended to allow remote updates can be abused to trick the machines into damaging themselves beyond repair
Technology
19 January 2023
A remote hack could make servers fry the chips inside them
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A flaw in the control systems of server motherboards means they can be tricked into revealing sensitive data to a hacker or even destroying themselves.
A computer’s motherboard, or circuit board, hosts many of its key components and allows communication between them.
Zitai Chen and David Oswald at the University of Birmingham, UK, have found a feature in the Supermicro X11SSL-CF motherboard often used in servers that allowed them to upload their own control software. This can subsequently compromise …
