Submitted via IRC for TheMightyBuzzard
Since the launch of AMD Ryzen, a small piece of hardware that handles basic memory initialization as well as many security functions has been the center of some controversy. Called the Platform Security Processor (the "PSP" for short) it is essentially an arm core with complete access to the entire system. Its actions can be considered "above root" level and are for the most part invisible to the OS. It is similar in this regard to Intel's Management Engine, but is in some ways even more powerful.
Why is this a bad thing? Well, let's play a theoretical. What happens if a bug is discovered in the PSP, and malware takes control of it? How would you remove it (Answer: you couldn't). How would you know you needed to remove it? (answer, unless it made itself obvious, you also wouldn't). This scenario is obviously not a good one, and is a concern for many who asked AMD to open-source the PSPs code for general community auditing.
Bit late to the reporting but we haven't covered it yet, so here it is. And I was so looking forward to a new desktop too. Guess this one will have to stay alive until ARM becomes a viable replacement.
Previous:
The Intel Management Engine, and How it Stops Screenshots
Intel x86 Considered Harmful
Of Intel's Hardware Rootkit
Intel Management Engine Partially Defeated
EFF: Intel's Management Engine is a Security Hazard
Malware uses Intel AMT feature to steal data, avoid firewalls
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 20 2017, @04:06PM (3 children)
All modern arm cpu's have a similar negative ring trustzone cpu. This is the only reason why you can buy hollywood movies and music on your android and iphone.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday August 20 2017, @04:23PM (1 child)
I wasn't aware of that. That makes the GP's quote even more interesting. Why is the author waiting for an ARM CPU then?
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 20 2017, @04:38PM
Also *SOME* very few ARM SoCs are programmed with stage0 bootloaders (mostly for development boards) that allows you to program the trustzone ring/core yourself (TrustZone can be implemented either as time sharing inside of a shared ARM core, or using a dedicated ARM core with memory maps separating 'trusted' and 'untrusted' regions of memory and i/o devices.)
A few may also allow a toggle switch which can enable/disable the firmware signing check, but in practice no manufacturer producing a non-dev board actually does that, since it might negatively affect DRM certification, the same I assume was the original reason for the Intel ME and then AMD PSP crap (but given the push for decryption capabilities by Congress, Intelligence Agencies, and Law Enforcement, I assume it has become a major cornerstone of their new encryption breakage strategies, since either pulling the keys out via the management cores or reducing the entropy of the RNG is a lot easier than trying to brute force the keys/'truly random' keys later on.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 20 2017, @10:38PM
I would never buy hollywood videos or music on my phone