Dell has released a patch for laptops and desktops containing a serious vulnerability that could allow hackers to remotely control computing devices. Researchers at security firm Eclipse revealed earlier this month that there were four flaws in the way BIOSConnect worked via Dell’s own SupportAssist tool, which comes preloaded. Pit machines. This is the second time in the past few months that Dell machines have come across vulnerabilities in the firmware update process, and the company will also release server-side updates to fix these vulnerabilities. These glaring flaws are believed to put about 30 million Dell PC lines at risk, including flagship XPS laptops, Inspiron laptops, Latitude laptops, Optiplex desktops, Vostro devices, as well as some models of the Alienware gaming series. .
In a security advisory issued by Dell, they state that Dell PC users should immediately update the BIOS on their computing devices using the ‘Drivers and Downloads’ section on the Dell website for the Wiipur specific machine. If they are unable to update, they should, at least for some time, turn off the BIOSConnect option on the PC – for this, turn off your PC, turn it on and immediately press the F2 key>> Update, Recovery> Press BIOSConnect. > Switch off. In the security note, Dell confirms that affected products include the Alienware m15 R6, Inspiron, OptiPlex, Latitude, Vostro and XPS lines. News18 has reached out to Dell for a statement on the vulnerability and subsequent fixes, and we’ll update you as soon as we hear back. (Update: Dell’s statement added below)
To simplify the complexity for you, the biggest problem is the way the BIOSConnect function in the Dell SupportAssist software checks for new firmware (also known as BIOS) updates online and downloads them to users. does. In the perfect world, every Dell computing device would connect to Dell’s servers to check for and download the appropriate firmware file. The Eclipse research team says they found that BIOSConnect would instead trust any server that could present a digital authentication certificate that followed the format used by certificates on the original Dell servers. It will then rummage around or search the server as well as try to download the matching BIOS update for the machine it is attempting to. It was a dream scenario for a hacker to start sending malicious files laden with malware in order to gain permanent remote access to the affected PC.
The researchers also say that for the injected malicious file to complete the hacker’s chain of access, the attacker would have to intercept the affected PC’s network. This may very well be possible even on a public Wi-Fi network. “Successfully compromising a device’s BIOS would give an attacker a high level of control over the device. The attacker could control the process of loading the host operating system and disable protection so that it could not be detected,” the researchers say. have to say. They also warn that the attacker will have the highest access privileges on the affected PC. 30 million Dell PCs affecting 129 different models, including laptops, desktops and convertible computing devices.
Update: Dell shared a statement with News18 and the company says that improvements are being made. “Dell addressed several vulnerabilities to the Dell BIOSConnect and HTTPS boot features available with some Dell client platforms. If customers have Dell auto-update turned on, the features will update automatically,” the company says. “We encourage customers to review the Dell Security Advisory (DSA-2021-106) for more information, and if auto-updates are not enabled, follow the remedial steps for their earliest convenience, Dale says.
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