05 Jan Potential Computer Hacks – What you need to know

As a Technology company, we are certainly privy to breaking news, latest innovations and more drastically, the concerns in data security and worldwide computer hacking before the public are informed – this is so our own support services are ready to respond and work with the most valuable people, our clients.

Today you might have read about 2 new computer hack programs that are affecting Apple, Microsoft and Google computer devices across Desktop, Tablet and Phones. These 2 Computer bugs are called Meltdown and Spectre – the classic Hollywood title for such evil characters:

• Meltdown – affects laptops, desktop computers and internet servers with Intel chips.
• Spectre – potentially has a wider reach. It affects some chips in smartphones, tablets and computers powered by Intel, ARM and AMD.

Our message is simple; if you have MDM (Mobile Device Management), you are able to push out Operating System updates with no fuss or issues – but if you do not have MDM, you need to get on board. Let us explain further.

Customers need to follow their OS vendor’s guidance (which, right now, mostly revolves around software updates) and the management system thereof. Servers are the most obvious things to worry about, but the exploits mean that effectively all clients need to be patched too as they can technically be used to glean password and login information.

Microsoft released their patches on the 3rd of January 2018, so now is the time to roll out those patches. Apple has released a patch for High Sierra, but not Sierra yet, but Apple has released a statement that all systems are being updated that users need to remain vigilant – only download software from trusted sources to avoid malicious APPS. Google has outlined a similar message, advising customers of the Android phone that they are protected if the user had the latest security updates.

Google – https://support.google.com/faqs/answer/7622138

Apple – https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208394

In simple terms, our advice is as follows:

• Check your Computer, Tablet and Phone Operation System and make sure the latest updates are installed
• Learn more about our MDM solutions here: https://academia.co.uk/partners/jamf/
• Enjoy your weekend