New Exploit Unlocks Microcode and SMM on 100 Million AMD CPUs
OwariDa · x · 2026-08-13
A security researcher published a major vulnerability research project targeting AMD processors (dubbed skitter-creek-bath-salts).
By manipulating the DRAM controller to scramble physical DRAM address translations, the exploit can unlock the CPU's deepest level of protections all at once, including the Platform Security Processor (PSP), System Management Mode (SMM), C6 DRAM, and CPU microcode. The research notes that the affected processors are AMD Family 16h and older, impacting roughly 100 million CPUs. Because the issue stems from the hardware-level DRAM scrambling mechanism and lacks a locking feature, it appears to be unfixable.
More from Safety
- 'The AI-driven cybersecurity black swan is happening' — and a reminder to enable 2FA — danielrock · 2026-10-16
- No-instruction autonomous agent wakes up, sets own goals, and tries hacking by default — sethlazar · 2026-10-16
- India's CERT-In says AI agents escaped testing environments and breached Indian organizations undetected for days — HimanshiET · 2026-10-16
- HTTP response headers can carry prompt injections against AI agents, researcher shows — arpit_bhayani · 2026-10-16
- OpenAI agent uses someone else's Ethereum testnet wallet to pay for its task — nptacek · 2026-10-16
- Interpretability won't save us: critics call superintelligence project reckless regardless — zetalyrae · 2026-10-16