Meltdown and Spectre: These Bugs are Deadly and You Should Be Worried

Jan 8, 2018

Forget Aussie flu, you may be in danger of catching another unwanted bug and it might be time to take action sooner rather than later.

Meltdown and Spectre have caused a national emergency and you should be on red alert, warn Communicate Better's IT experts.

Here, we explain why these nasty little vermin deserve your attention and how you can put your mind at ease by speaking to one of our specialists on 0800 054 6000 today.

What are Meltdown and Spectre?

Other than a scary name and a James Bond film title, these two terms refer to two security flaws that allow critical information stored deep inside computer systems to be exposed.

This makes it easier for processor exploits to steal passwords and other sensitive user data from almost any device made in the past 20 years.

Who is in danger?

Simple answer... everyone. Billions of PCs, smartphones and tablets have been hit by the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities.

This means your critical business data may be left completely unprotected, resulting in justifiable panic. So yeah, er... panic.

So, what can I do to keep protected?

There are a few quick preventative measures you can consider right away.

Keep updated: Make sure you have the latest software installed to your device as the likes of Apple are making round-the-cloud efforts to keep systems safe and secure from Meltdown.

Fixes for Spectre are slightly trickier and may require hardware changes.

Other fixes include enabling two-factor authentication, which uses login codes from your phone or email. Enable this on as many sensitive accounts as possible, create long passwords, and don’t reuse them. Also consider a password manager, which can create passwords for you (but make sure the manager itself is secure, obviously).

It's vital that you know what you're doing or get help from someone who does. Patches for Meltdown and Spectre could slow down computers in some cases by up to 30%. And that's where we come in.

Just how secure is your system? For a FREE health check, contact Communicate Better's dedicated care team or call us on 0800 054 6000 today.

If you're an existing customer, please direct any questions or concerns to our support team who are more than happy to help.