HP's Endpoint Security Controller: More Details About A New Chip in HP Notebooks
One of HP's key announcements this spring was its revamped security initiative for PCs that includes hardware, software, and deep learning-based approaches. The software and DL parts of the things were discussed earlier this month, but the hardware-based Endpoint Security Controller remained more or less a mystery. This is why we asked HP to talk about it in more detail.
When it was announced, the company said that the HP Endpoint Security Controller is indeed a separate piece of silicon that sits inside HP's PCs and performs certain security-based tasks. The ESC features a general-purpose processor core, HP's custom hardware IP blocks, and embedded software. What is interesting is that HP has been installing the controller into its laptops since the EliteBook 800 G1 series launched in 2013, but has been very secretive about it until recently.
Initially, HP used the Endpoint Security Controller only for its Sure Start technology that can 'heal'/recover the system BIOS. Fast forward to 2019, and the controller has gained capabilities. HP now uses it to protect Intel's Management Engine, and to enable its Sure Run and Sure Recover capabilities.
Would you rather purchase a Huawei or HP laptop?
[We have covered the Intel Management Engine many times before. --Ed]
(Score: 2) by driverless on Sunday May 05 2019, @10:03AM
It's actually kinda scary that a manufacturer has to put a hardware firewall in its PCs to deal with the backdoors that the CPU vendor puts in the CPUs it sells them.
Or at least, given the lack of detail, to replace Intel backdoors with HP ones.