WTF: Kill switch for Sandy Bridge?

[gevorg]

Anyone heard about this? I hope this is just FUD.

Intel’s new Sandy Bridge processor can be remotely disabled by a hardware/software combination known at Anti-Theft 3.0. Systems can be disabled over 3G networks, even while the OS is not running. Even when the hard drive is replaced, the critical systems will still be terminated.

http://www.eutimes.net/2010/12/remote-kill-switch-added-to-intel-sandy-bridge/

 

[VirtualLarry]

Wow. Good reason to avoid Intel, if true.

 

[OCGuy]

It starts with little information about a feature, and then goes off on a Patriot Act and CIA rant.

I'm going to withhold my judgement on this one.


People can already destroy your information if they really want to, adding a user-enabled kill switch for a stolen computer wouldn't really scare me.

If you think it is that scary, just use some of the extra tinfoil from one of your hats you have laying around to cover your CPU. It will disable the feature.

 

[Vette73]

Yea as much as final silicone cost I am sure they spent money to put in a cell phone reciever in every chip let alone all the other sure signs of BS like, as OCGuy pointed out, the Patriot act and such.

 

[Davidh373]

Everyone look at that shitty Photoshop.... <_< ... on another note, that article is bogus...

 

[Idontcare]

Rating: 5.0/5 (1 vote cast)

1 vote cast for the article's rating...I'm guessing this article isn't sourced by what one might consider to be a highly trafficed reputable EU site :hmm:

 

[Davidh373]

1 vote cast for the article's rating...I'm guessing this article isn't sourced by what one might consider to be a highly trafficed reputable EU site

lol!

 

[Rifter]

yeah sure, ill believe it when i see it.

 

[Obsoleet]

Yea as much as final silicone cost I am sure they spent money to put in a cell phone reciever in every chip let alone all the other sure signs of BS like, as OCGuy pointed out, the Patriot act and such.

The cost portion is why conspiracies are bunk. If something happens to be cheaper and causes problems with something (poor food quality ect) then it's not the economic system at fault! It's just a NWO conspiracy. That's how they justify sticking with advocating pure capitalist economics with no regulation. Global warming has to be false, because if it were you would have a strong, if not mandatory reasoning for some form of world government. They are scared of -any- government, because they are not vigilant enough to be good citizens of one.

But if the device needed for a conspiracy is expensive, suddenly that's logical because companies love to spend money on extra R&D and material with no product value. Way too much logic and facts removed for me in the conspiracy world. I do believe the world works on conspiracy (as in, backroom deals) but more difficult to pull off some of this stuff brought forward.

Your signature makes me laugh everytime I read it.

Originally Posted by spidey07
I'm proud to be a racist now. VERY proud.

VERY proud. What a hoot.

 

[IntelUser2000]

Anyone heard about this? I hope this is just FUD.

http://www.eutimes.net/2010/12/remote-kill-switch-added-to-intel-sandy-bridge/

This isn't anything to get upset about. The Anti Theft tech is available on chipsets with a "Q" in front of the name(Q4x/Q6x etc), and is mostly aimed at business. Mobile versions of the chips exist too, with the naming at "QM". If you get regular chipsets(like the X, H, and P series) without the vPro and Anti Theft you don't get the feature.

 

[steve wilson]

It starts with little information about a feature, and then goes off on a Patriot Act and CIA rant.

I'm going to withhold my judgement on this one.


People can already destroy your information if they really want to, adding a user-enabled kill switch for a stolen computer wouldn't really scare me.

If you think it is that scary, just use some of the extra tinfoil from one of your hats you have laying around to cover your CPU. It will disable the feature.

ROFL... that gave me a good laugh... thanks

 

[StrangerGuy]

Intel can control my brain through quantum brainwaves, I swear it's true. Omg, they are closing in! Run for the hills! Run for the-...*static*

 

[aigomorla]

aHHH.. flash back gamer..

so when can i have my computers all dance in the union like they did in the gamer?

 

[RU482]

So is this Intel's version of Computrace?

 

[ViRGE]

This isn't anything to get upset about. The Anti Theft tech is available on chipsets with a "Q" in front of the name(Q4x/Q6x etc), and is mostly aimed at business. Mobile versions of the chips exist too, with the naming at "QM". If you get regular chipsets(like the X, H, and P series) without the vPro and Anti Theft you don't get the feature.

Exactly. I've been banging my head on my desk since I saw this story at Slashdot this afternoon. A non-technical journalist saw vPro/AMT on the Sandy Bridge spec sheet, didn't realize what it was for, and it's been spiraling ever since.

 

[gevorg]

This isn't anything to get upset about. The Anti Theft tech is available on chipsets with a "Q" in front of the name(Q4x/Q6x etc), and is mostly aimed at business. Mobile versions of the chips exist too, with the naming at "QM". If you get regular chipsets(like the X, H, and P series) without the vPro and Anti Theft you don't get the feature.

Aha! That makes total sense for laptops, for some reason that article makes it seem like all Sandy Bridge CPUs would have that feature. FUD indeed.

 

[AdamK47]

The articles about this have a negative slant on the feature and some of you buy into it. Come on guys, I expected better from the AnandTech forums.

 

[Davidh373]

The articles about this have a negative slant on the feature and you guys buy into it. Come on guys, I expected better from the AnandTech forums.

umm... I'm pretty sure 90&#37; said this was bogus dude... and others routed us to reputable sites telling people what to expect from the feature that's ACTUALLY true.

 

[AdamK47]

The OP and second poster bought into it.

 

[sandorski]

Imagine the Viruses made to exploit such a thing though. It would make reaching across the Internet and slapping someone in the face a reality!

 

[Davidh373]

The OP and second poster bought into it.

not really, kinda I guess.

 

[VirtualLarry]

The OP and second poster bought into it.

You don't think that the RIAA is begging Intel for that sort of capability?

 

[Idontcare]

You don't think that the RIAA is begging Intel for that sort of capability?

I'm not convinced that the RIAA wants to stop piracy per se, I am convinced they want to make money off of the piracy industry though.

Killswitching a pirate's rig doesn't net them any money. Suing folks with evidence in hand of said piracy nets them some money.

If RIAA was begging for anything it was a method of detecting and documenting acts of piracy, not killswitching to stop it.

 

[soccerballtux]

I'm not convinced that the RIAA wants to stop piracy per se, I am convinced they want to make money off of the piracy industry though.

Killswitching a pirate's rig doesn't net them any money. Suing folks with evidence in hand of said piracy nets them some money.

If RIAA was begging for anything it was a method of detecting and documenting acts of piracy, not killswitching to stop it.

they never get real $$$ when they sue; it's for the publicity

 

[habbakuk87]

Intel is really killing the awesome vibes of the Sandybridge by stuff like this killswitch and (AFAIK) bolting their crappy GPU solution to 'each and every' processor of this microarchitecture.

BTW this killswitch stuff is already present with BIOS support like in AMI BIOSs why do Intel consider it worth their time to build redundancy in their processors.