Summary
A newly discovered vulnerability in Apple’s M-series chips could allow hackers to steal cryptographic keys from Macs, potentially targeting high-end users with cryptocurrency wallets. The exploit, dubbed the “GoFetch exploit,” works by accessing the CPU cache through Data Memory-Dependent Prefetchers. Apple has released a fix for the M3 chips, but developers were not informed until recently, leaving wallet makers like MetaMask and Phantom to implement patches. For now, users with vulnerable devices should remove crypto wallets to stay safe.
Key Points
1. Security researchers have discovered a vulnerability in Apple’s latest computer chips that could allow hackers to steal cryptographic keys from devices made in the last half decade, including those used to protect crypto wallets.
2. The potential hack, known as the “GoFetch exploit,” involves gaining access to the computer’s CPU cache through Data Memory-Dependent Prefetchers (DMPs) built into the chips, which could be used to extract secret keys from Macs.
3. Apple has released a fix for this vulnerability in its M3 chips, but developers were not informed about it until recently. Crypto users are advised to remove their wallets from vulnerable Apple devices as a precaution, and it is up to wallet makers like MetaMask and Phantom to implement a patch to protect against the exploit.