As we know, buying an older phone can be a big security risk, as it might not get updates anymore. How about laptops? i would install Linux on the laptop. Is it a security risk to buy a used and refurbished computer from maybe 2019?
You mention old hardware is generally exploited physically, but we’ve seen a number of critical bugs in CPUs in recent years such as Specter and Meltdown that can be exploited by just visiting a website. Yes these can be mitigated by the OS, but alluring that hardware bugs are not exploitable remotely isn’t quite correct.
I didn’t know Specter or Meltdown can be exploited through a website, that’s good to know.
I should have been more specific on this issue: old hardware is much less common to exploit than old OS or software, so buying new hardware for the sake of hardware security might not be necessary for ones threat scenario. However if there is a risk of a malicious actor accessing or stealing the hardware, then the hardware is definitely relevant.
Similarly I do think one can do a lot with old hardware if they can find a usecase with less needed privileges.
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You mention old hardware is generally exploited physically, but we’ve seen a number of critical bugs in CPUs in recent years such as Specter and Meltdown that can be exploited by just visiting a website. Yes these can be mitigated by the OS, but alluring that hardware bugs are not exploitable remotely isn’t quite correct.
I didn’t know Specter or Meltdown can be exploited through a website, that’s good to know.
I should have been more specific on this issue: old hardware is much less common to exploit than old OS or software, so buying new hardware for the sake of hardware security might not be necessary for ones threat scenario. However if there is a risk of a malicious actor accessing or stealing the hardware, then the hardware is definitely relevant.
Similarly I do think one can do a lot with old hardware if they can find a usecase with less needed privileges.