Meltdown and Specter: The recent gaps in multi-processor architecture built over the past two decades are the latest security breach that has hit the IT industry.
The phenomenon Meltdown and Specter once again came to confirm what many know but find it difficult to admit: no one should think of their system as safe. It is much more likely to recognize a system as "stable" and of course as potentially unsafe. 
This means thinking about security as a continuum procedure and not as an endpoint.
Specter and Meltdown flaws are present in most Intel CPUs by 1995, and other chip manufacturers are affected.
To many it may seem inconceivable that such serious vulnerabilities remain without updates for so many years (the joy of the NSA). However it is simply a function of the incredible complexity of the systems we all use. A long time ago, there was another one: Remember Heartbleed? The Gap in the Cryptographic Library OpenSSL which launched with its own logo and caused panic in IT worldwide. Remember Shellshock? WannaCry ransomware?
Security is a utopia and believing that your systems are absolutely safe you are living a very dangerous illusion. Just suppose your systems are precarious, and you'll start making better decisions.
Security has ceased to exist with the advent of the internet, but many of us do not seem to have realized it. Specter and Meltdown are two good examples because they can affect everything from the PC in your office and the smartphone you have in your pocket to the cloud service you use to store your data. No matter how good you are at “security,” today you rely on the constellation of service providers and their various partners.
The code of any software, operating system, or firmware που αποστέλλεται από τους προμηθευτές είναι αναπόφευκτα ατελής, οπότε πάντα θα υπάρχουν ενημερώσεις. Η εφαρμογή αυτών των επιδιορθώσεων θεωρείται κουραστική και άχαρη δουλειά από πολλούς IT. Ειδικά σε εταιρικά περιβάλλοντα, όπου οι κάθε ενημερώσεις θα πρέπει να ελέγχονται από τους IT, ούτως ώστε να είναι σίγουροι ότι δεν θα προκαλέσουν προβλήματα κατά την εφαρμογή τους. Έτσι πολλές φορές οι ενημερώσεις δεν αποτελούν αν και θα έπρεπε την πρώτη προτεραιότητα. Το ransomware WannaCry κυκλοφόρησε πέρυσι, αν και η Microsoft είχε κυκλοφορήσει ένα patch.
Of course this is what hackers know. Updates exist, but there are also systems that are not up to date.
So, what is security?
If you assume there is no security, you will have a greater chance of getting online and going safely. The aim of the article is to be suspicious.
There are no companies that can protect you, and if they promise they lie. Security means knowing that it does not exist, which prepares you for the worst scenarios.
