As discussed in Part 1, certain processors manufactured by Intel, AMD, and ARM have the Spectre and Meltdown CPU security flaws, which may let hackers steal private information like passwords and encryption keys from open applications. This discovery stunned the industry because the flaws are in millions of devices, including computers, servers, and smartphones. Part 1 discussed how Android devices, iPhones, and iPads can be protected. Part 2 will discuss how to protect Windows Computers, Macs, and Chromebooks.

Windows Computers

Windows computers will probably be the device most affected by Spectre and Meltdown, whether they are running on Intel or AMD processors. Fortunately, Microsoft is being proactive, and the company released a security update in January 2018 for Windows 10 and their previous Windows versions.

This security update should be downloaded and installed automatically by Windows 10 PCs. To confirm that this was performed by your computer, go to the Search bar of the Taskbar and enter “windows update,” then choose “Check for updates.” If any updates are pending, make sure they are downloaded and installed.

Macs

After confirming that all their Macs have the Meltdown and Spectre security flaws, Apple released several updates for Mac OS 10.13.2 to address the issue. If you own a Mac, keep abreast of Apple’s updates to OS X or Mac OS and ensure your computer has downloaded and installed the newest version of its operating system.

Chromebooks

Most Chromebooks are already protected from Meltdown and Spectre because of Google’s Chrome OS version 63 release in December 2017. The operating system includes features that provide protections against the security flaws.

To confirm that your Chromebook has the version 63 update and to find out if another update is being released for your device, go to this Google page for Chrome OS devices:  Meltdown/Spectre vulnerability status for Chrome OS devices

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