3 ms·

Nvidia Hacked – A National Security Disaster

39 points by chmaynard 5y ago

UltraViolence 5y ago
I too claimed that this hack could eventually mean the end of Nvidia, but was essentially laughed at. If Chinese GPU manufacturers use these files to their advantage and start selling comparable GPU's for half the price or less enormous pressure will build up to allow the sale of these devices, since the general public loves cheap stuff. We saw the same happening with Huawei equipment, which incorporated stolen source code, bugs and all, but selling at less than half the price. Telecom providers started pushing on governments to allow the sale of Huawei equipment so they could roll out 5G more cheaply and quickly.
edm0nd 5y ago
I really hope they leak the full LHR unlock so my 30xx series cards can get a lil bit more hash rate.
- rob_c 5y ago
  Go read the source code was the message, given the gains on "hacked" drivers I think the answer is there, but frankly I would be dumping crypto right now...
jarbus 5y ago
Finally, some information about the technical specifics of the hack
zakary 5y ago
The article gives the opinion that this is an entirely negative thing to have happened, and implies that it is bad for consumers. While it’s absolutely bad for Nvidia, I’m not convinced it’s bad for ‘progress’ of GPU/AI etc development. It’s obvious that Nvidia is big enough and rich enough to weather this storm, even if everything is released online, they will still be pretty dominant no matter how this plays out. However I can easily foresee this info becoming public eventually making GPU tech cheaper and more efficient simply through increased competition. If there’s a dozen companies able to make ‘Nvidia Compatible’ drivers and hardware, then it stands to reason consumers will be the winners with more choice and lower prices. This of course comes at the expense of Nvidias, perhaps well deserved, monopoly profits.
- gregw2 5y ago
  Nah the lame thing is that Chinese and others can learn a ton from the dumps and the consumer benefits short/medium term but Nvidia margin to plow back into R&D is irreparably harmed and the consumer suffers. Top engineering talent at Nvidia takes bucks. Or that margin, after being cannabalized in 3-24 months takes a decade to rebuild.
rob_c 5y ago
Corporate espionage? Really, just dump exposed kit and revoke trusted certs and 99% of "easy" attacks go away. Frankly to have any trust Nvidia is probably going to pay for an audit to reduce scope of future exploits based on people analyzing the code. Remember Linux is oss just because the code is out there doesn't mean just anyone can walk in and find a zero-day...

39 points by chmaynard 5y ago

I too claimed that this hack could eventually mean the end of Nvidia, but was essentially laughed at. If Chinese GPU manufacturers use these files to their advantage and start selling comparable GPU's for half the price or less enormous pressure will build up to allow the sale of these devices, since the general public loves cheap stuff. We saw the same happening with Huawei equipment, which incorporated stolen source code, bugs and all, but selling at less than half the price. Telecom providers started pushing on governments to allow the sale of Huawei equipment so they could roll out 5G more cheaply and quickly.

edm0nd 5y ago

I really hope they leak the full LHR unlock so my 30xx series cards can get a lil bit more hash rate.

rob_c 5y ago
Go read the source code was the message, given the gains on "hacked" drivers I think the answer is there, but frankly I would be dumping crypto right now...

jarbus 5y ago

Finally, some information about the technical specifics of the hack

zakary 5y ago

The article gives the opinion that this is an entirely negative thing to have happened, and implies that it is bad for consumers. While it’s absolutely bad for Nvidia, I’m not convinced it’s bad for ‘progress’ of GPU/AI etc development. It’s obvious that Nvidia is big enough and rich enough to weather this storm, even if everything is released online, they will still be pretty dominant no matter how this plays out. However I can easily foresee this info becoming public eventually making GPU tech cheaper and more efficient simply through increased competition. If there’s a dozen companies able to make ‘Nvidia Compatible’ drivers and hardware, then it stands to reason consumers will be the winners with more choice and lower prices. This of course comes at the expense of Nvidias, perhaps well deserved, monopoly profits.

gregw2 5y ago
Nah the lame thing is that Chinese and others can learn a ton from the dumps and the consumer benefits short/medium term but Nvidia margin to plow back into R&D is irreparably harmed and the consumer suffers. Top engineering talent at Nvidia takes bucks. Or that margin, after being cannabalized in 3-24 months takes a decade to rebuild.

rob_c 5y ago

Corporate espionage? Really, just dump exposed kit and revoke trusted certs and 99% of "easy" attacks go away. Frankly to have any trust Nvidia is probably going to pay for an audit to reduce scope of future exploits based on people analyzing the code. Remember Linux is oss just because the code is out there doesn't mean just anyone can walk in and find a zero-day...