<s>
The	O
Intel	B-Device
Management	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
(	O
ME	O
)	O
,	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
the	O
Intel	O
Manageability	O
Engine	O
,	O
is	O
an	O
autonomous	O
subsystem	O
that	O
has	O
been	O
incorporated	O
in	O
virtually	O
all	O
of	O
Intel	O
's	O
processor	B-General_Concept
chipsets	B-Device
since	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
located	O
in	O
the	O
Platform	B-Device
Controller	I-Device
Hub	I-Device
of	O
modern	O
Intel	O
motherboards	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Intel	B-Device
Management	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
always	O
runs	O
as	O
long	O
as	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
is	O
receiving	O
power	O
,	O
even	O
when	O
the	O
computer	O
is	O
turned	O
off	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Intel	O
's	O
main	O
competitor	O
AMD	O
has	O
incorporated	O
the	O
equivalent	O
AMD	B-Device
Secure	I-Device
Technology	I-Device
(	O
formally	O
called	O
Platform	B-Device
Security	I-Device
Processor	I-Device
)	O
in	O
virtually	O
all	O
of	O
its	O
post-2013	O
CPUs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Management	B-Device
Engine	I-Device
is	O
often	O
confused	O
with	O
Intel	B-Application
AMT	I-Application
(	O
Intel	B-Application
Active	I-Application
Management	I-Application
Technology	I-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
AMT	O
runs	O
on	O
the	O
ME	O
,	O
but	O
is	O
only	O
available	O
on	O
processors	O
with	O
vPro	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
ME	O
itself	O
is	O
built	O
into	O
all	O
Intel	O
chipsets	B-Device
since	O
2008	O
,	O
not	O
only	O
those	O
with	O
AMT	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
subsystem	O
primarily	O
consists	O
of	O
proprietary	B-Application
firmware	O
running	O
on	O
a	O
separate	O
microprocessor	O
that	O
performs	O
tasks	O
during	O
boot-up	O
,	O
while	O
the	O
computer	O
is	O
running	O
,	O
and	O
while	O
it	O
is	O
asleep	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
long	O
as	O
the	O
chipset	B-Device
or	O
SoC	B-Architecture
is	O
supplied	O
with	O
power	O
(	O
via	O
battery	O
or	O
power	O
supply	O
)	O
,	O
it	O
continues	O
to	O
run	O
even	O
when	O
the	O
system	O
is	O
turned	O
off	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Its	O
exact	O
workings	O
are	O
largely	O
undocumented	O
and	O
its	O
code	O
is	O
obfuscated	O
using	O
confidential	O
Huffman	B-General_Concept
tables	I-General_Concept
stored	O
directly	O
in	O
hardware	O
,	O
so	O
the	O
firmware	O
does	O
not	O
contain	O
the	O
information	O
necessary	O
to	O
decode	O
its	O
contents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Starting	O
with	O
ME11	O
,	O
it	O
is	O
based	O
on	O
the	O
Intel	B-Device
Quark	I-Device
x86-based	O
32-bit	O
CPU	O
and	O
runs	O
the	O
MINIX	B-Application
3	I-Application
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ME	O
firmware	O
is	O
stored	O
in	O
a	O
partition	O
of	O
the	O
SPI	B-Architecture
BIOS	O
Flash	O
,	O
using	O
the	O
Embedded	O
Flash	O
File	O
System	O
(	O
EFFS	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Previous	O
versions	O
were	O
based	O
on	O
an	O
ARC	B-Application
core	I-Application
,	O
with	O
the	O
Management	B-Device
Engine	I-Device
running	O
the	O
ThreadX	B-Operating_System
RTOS	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Versions	O
1.x	O
to	O
5.x	O
of	O
the	O
ME	O
used	O
the	O
ARCTangent-A4	O
(	O
32-bit	O
only	O
instructions	O
)	O
whereas	O
versions	O
6.x	O
to	O
8.x	O
used	O
the	O
newer	O
ARCompact	B-Application
(	O
mixed	O
32	O
-	O
and	O
16-bit	B-Device
instruction	B-General_Concept
set	I-General_Concept
architecture	I-General_Concept
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Starting	O
with	O
ME	O
7.1	O
,	O
the	O
ARC	B-Application
processor	I-Application
could	O
also	O
execute	O
signed	O
Java	B-Application
applets	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ME	O
has	O
its	O
own	O
MAC	O
and	O
IP	O
address	O
for	O
the	O
out-of-band	B-Application
management	I-Application
interface	O
,	O
with	O
direct	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
Ethernet	O
controller	O
;	O
one	O
portion	O
of	O
the	O
Ethernet	O
traffic	O
is	O
diverted	O
to	O
the	O
ME	O
even	O
before	O
reaching	O
the	O
host	O
's	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
for	O
what	O
support	O
exists	O
in	O
various	O
Ethernet	O
controllers	O
,	O
exported	O
and	O
made	O
configurable	O
via	O
Management	O
Component	O
Transport	O
Protocol	O
(	O
MCTP	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Under	O
Linux	B-Application
,	O
communication	O
between	O
the	O
host	O
and	O
the	O
ME	O
is	O
done	O
via	O
or	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Until	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
Nehalem	B-Device
processors	O
,	O
the	O
ME	O
was	O
usually	O
embedded	O
into	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
's	O
northbridge	B-Device
,	O
following	O
the	O
Memory	B-Device
Controller	I-Device
Hub	I-Device
(	O
MCH	O
)	O
layout	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
newer	O
Intel	O
architectures	O
(	O
Intel	B-Device
5	I-Device
Series	I-Device
onwards	O
)	O
,	O
ME	O
is	O
integrated	O
into	O
the	O
Platform	B-Device
Controller	I-Device
Hub	I-Device
(	O
PCH	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
Intel	O
's	O
current	O
terminology	O
as	O
of	O
2017	O
,	O
ME	O
is	O
one	O
of	O
several	O
firmware	O
sets	O
for	O
the	O
Converged	B-Device
Security	I-Device
and	I-Device
Manageability	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
(	O
CSME	O
)	O
(	O
Need	O
to	O
be	O
updated	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
latest	O
document( 	O
#635338	O
v1.0	O
P.	O
#6	O
)	O
described	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
AMT	O
version	O
11	O
,	O
CSME	O
was	O
called	O
Intel	B-Device
Management	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
BIOS	O
Extension	O
(	O
Intel	O
MEBx	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Russian	O
company	O
Positive	O
Technologies	O
(	O
Dmitry	O
Sklyarov	O
)	O
found	O
that	O
the	O
ME	O
firmware	O
version	O
11	O
runs	O
MINIX	B-Application
3	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Quiet	O
System	O
Technology	O
(	O
QST	O
)	O
,	O
formerly	O
known	O
as	O
Advanced	O
Fan	O
Speed	O
Control	O
(	O
AFSC	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
provides	O
support	O
for	O
acoustically-optimized	O
fan	O
speed	O
control	O
,	O
and	O
monitoring	O
of	O
temperature	O
,	O
voltage	O
,	O
current	O
and	O
fan	O
speed	O
sensors	O
that	O
are	O
provided	O
in	O
the	O
chipset	B-Device
,	O
CPU	O
and	O
other	O
devices	O
present	O
on	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Communication	O
with	O
the	O
QST	O
firmware	O
subsystem	O
is	O
documented	O
and	O
available	O
through	O
the	O
official	O
software	B-Application
development	I-Application
kit	I-Application
(	O
SDK	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Intel	B-Device
Anti-Theft	I-Device
Technology	I-Device
(	O
AT	O
)	O
,	O
discontinued	O
in	O
2015	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Every	O
Intel	O
platform	O
with	O
provisioned	O
Intel	O
Standard	O
Manageability	O
,	O
Active	B-Application
Management	I-Application
Technology	I-Application
,	O
or	O
Small	O
Business	O
Technology	O
,	O
from	O
Nehalem	B-Device
in	O
2008	O
to	O
Kaby	B-Device
Lake	I-Device
in	O
2017	O
has	O
a	O
remotely	O
exploitable	O
security	O
hole	O
in	O
the	O
ME	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additional	O
major	O
security	O
flaws	O
in	O
the	O
ME	O
affecting	O
a	O
very	O
large	O
number	O
of	O
computers	O
incorporating	O
ME	O
,	O
Trusted	B-Device
Execution	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
(	O
TXE	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Server	B-Device
Platform	I-Device
Services	I-Device
(	O
SPS	O
)	O
firmware	O
,	O
from	O
Skylake	B-Architecture
in	O
2015	O
to	O
Coffee	B-Device
Lake	I-Device
in	O
2017	O
,	O
were	O
confirmed	O
by	O
Intel	O
on	O
20	O
November	O
2017	O
(	O
SA-00086	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
ring−3	O
rootkit	O
was	O
demonstrated	O
by	O
Invisible	O
Things	O
Lab	O
for	O
the	O
Q35	O
chipset	B-Device
;	O
it	O
does	O
not	O
work	O
for	O
the	O
later	O
Q45	O
chipset	B-Device
as	O
Intel	O
implemented	O
additional	O
protections	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ME	O
rootkit	O
could	O
be	O
installed	O
regardless	O
of	O
whether	O
the	O
AMT	O
is	O
present	O
or	O
enabled	O
on	O
the	O
system	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
chipset	B-Device
always	O
contains	O
the	O
ARC	B-Application
ME	O
coprocessor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
The	O
"	O
−3	O
"	O
designation	O
was	O
chosen	O
because	O
the	O
ME	O
coprocessor	O
works	O
even	O
when	O
the	O
system	O
is	O
in	O
the	O
S3	O
state	O
,	O
thus	O
it	O
was	O
considered	O
a	O
layer	O
below	O
the	O
System	B-Architecture
Management	I-Architecture
Mode	I-Architecture
rootkits	O
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
the	O
vulnerable	O
Q35	O
chipset	B-Device
,	O
a	O
keystroke	O
logger	O
ME-based	O
rootkit	O
was	O
demonstrated	O
by	O
Patrick	O
Stewin	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
security	O
evaluation	O
by	O
Vassilios	O
Ververis	O
showed	O
serious	O
weaknesses	O
in	O
the	O
GM45	O
chipset	B-Device
implementation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
particular	O
,	O
it	O
criticized	O
AMT	O
for	O
transmitting	O
unencrypted	O
passwords	O
in	O
the	O
SMB	O
provisioning	O
mode	O
when	O
the	O
IDE	O
redirection	O
and	O
Serial	B-General_Concept
over	I-General_Concept
LAN	I-General_Concept
features	O
are	O
used	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2017	O
,	O
the	O
PLATINUM	O
cybercrime	O
group	O
became	O
notable	O
for	O
exploiting	O
the	O
serial	B-General_Concept
over	I-General_Concept
LAN	I-General_Concept
(	O
SOL	O
)	O
capabilities	O
of	O
AMT	O
to	O
perform	O
data	O
exfiltration	O
of	O
stolen	O
documents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
20	O
November	O
,	O
2017	O
Intel	O
confirmed	O
that	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
serious	O
flaws	O
had	O
been	O
found	O
in	O
the	O
Management	B-Device
Engine	I-Device
(	O
mainstream	O
)	O
,	O
Trusted	B-Device
Execution	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
(	O
tablet/mobile	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Server	B-Device
Platform	I-Device
Services	I-Device
(	O
high	O
end	O
server	O
)	O
firmware	O
,	O
and	O
released	O
a	O
"	O
critical	O
firmware	O
update	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
not	O
possible	O
to	O
patch	O
the	O
problems	O
from	O
the	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
firmware	O
(	O
UEFI	O
,	O
BIOS	O
)	O
update	O
to	O
the	O
motherboard	B-Device
is	O
required	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
anticipated	O
to	O
take	O
quite	O
some	O
time	O
for	O
the	O
many	O
individual	O
manufacturers	O
to	O
accomplish	O
,	O
if	O
it	O
ever	O
would	O
be	O
for	O
many	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Intel	O
indicated	O
there	O
would	O
be	O
no	O
patch	O
for	O
3rd	O
generation	O
Core	O
processors	O
or	O
earlier	O
despite	O
chips	O
or	O
their	O
chipsets	B-Device
as	O
far	O
back	O
as	O
Intel	B-Device
Core	I-Device
2	O
Duo	O
vPro	B-Architecture
and	O
Intel	O
Centrino	O
2	O
vPro	B-Architecture
being	O
affected	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
Intel	B-Application
AMT	I-Application
must	O
be	O
enabled	O
and	O
provisioned	O
for	O
the	O
vulnerability	O
to	O
exist	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Critics	O
like	O
the	O
Electronic	O
Frontier	O
Foundation	O
(	O
EFF	O
)	O
,	O
Libreboot	B-Device
developers	O
,	O
and	O
security	O
expert	O
Damien	O
Zammit	O
accused	O
the	O
ME	O
of	O
being	O
a	O
backdoor	O
and	O
a	O
privacy	O
concern	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
context	O
of	O
criticism	O
of	O
the	O
Intel	B-Device
ME	I-Device
and	O
AMD	B-Device
Secure	I-Device
Technology	I-Device
it	O
has	O
been	O
pointed	O
out	O
that	O
the	O
National	O
Security	O
Agency	O
(	O
NSA	O
)	O
budget	O
request	O
for	O
2013	O
contained	O
a	O
Sigint	O
Enabling	O
Project	O
with	O
the	O
goal	O
to	O
"	O
Insert	O
vulnerabilities	O
into	O
commercial	O
encryption	O
systems	O
,	O
IT	O
systems	O
,	O
…	O
"	O
and	O
it	O
has	O
been	O
conjectured	O
that	O
Intel	B-Device
ME	I-Device
and	O
AMD	B-Device
Secure	I-Device
Technology	I-Device
might	O
be	O
part	O
of	O
that	O
program	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Intel	O
considers	O
disabling	O
ME	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
security	O
vulnerability	O
,	O
as	O
a	O
malware	O
could	O
abuse	O
it	O
to	O
make	O
the	O
computer	O
lose	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
functionality	O
that	O
the	O
typical	O
user	O
expects	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
play	O
media	O
with	O
DRM	O
,	O
specifically	O
DRM	O
media	O
that	O
are	O
using	O
HDCP	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
manufacturers	O
like	O
Purism	O
disable	O
Intel	B-Device
Management	I-Device
Engine	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2017	O
,	O
Positive	O
Technologies	O
(	O
Dmitry	O
Sklyarov	O
)	O
published	O
a	O
method	O
to	O
disable	O
the	O
ME	O
via	O
an	O
undocumented	B-General_Concept
built-in	I-General_Concept
mode	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
From	O
late	O
2017	O
on	O
,	O
several	O
laptop	O
vendors	O
announced	O
their	O
intentions	O
to	O
ship	O
laptops	O
with	O
the	O
Intel	B-Device
ME	I-Device
disabled	O
or	O
let	O
the	O
end-users	O
disable	O
it	O
manually	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
further	O
announced	O
in	O
October	O
2017	O
that	O
new	O
batches	O
of	O
their	O
Librem	B-Device
line	O
of	O
laptops	O
running	O
PureOS	B-Language
will	O
ship	O
with	O
the	O
ME	O
neutralized	O
,	O
and	O
additionally	O
disable	O
most	O
ME	O
operation	O
via	O
the	O
HAP	O
bit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Updates	O
for	O
existing	O
Librem	B-Device
laptops	O
were	O
also	O
announced	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
,	O
Dell	O
began	O
showing	O
certain	O
laptops	O
on	O
its	O
website	O
that	O
offered	O
the	O
"	O
Systems	O
Management	O
"	O
option	O
"	O
Intel	B-Architecture
vPro	I-Architecture
-	O
ME	O
Inoperable	O
,	O
Custom	O
Order	O
"	O
for	O
an	O
additional	O
fee	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2018	O
,	O
,	O
a	O
German	O
company	O
which	O
specializes	O
in	O
PCs	O
which	O
run	O
operating	B-Application
systems	I-Application
which	I-Application
use	I-Application
the	I-Application
Linux	I-Application
kernel	I-Application
,	O
announced	O
an	O
option	O
in	O
the	O
BIOS	O
of	O
their	O
system	O
to	O
disable	O
ME	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2021	O
Nitrokey	O
,	O
a	O
German	O
company	O
specialized	O
in	O
producing	O
Security	O
Tokens	O
,	O
announced	O
NitroPC	O
,	O
a	O
device	O
identical	O
to	O
Purism	O
's	O
Librem	B-Device
Mini	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
January	O
2023	O
,	O
monocles	O
,	O
a	O
German	O
start-up	O
which	O
offers	O
several	O
privacy	O
friendly	O
and	O
secure	O
services	O
and	O
devices	O
sells	O
the	O
monocles	O
book	O
1	O
,	O
a	O
refurbished	O
notebook	O
with	O
disabled	O
Intel	B-Device
ME	I-Device
and	O
plans	O
to	O
produce	O
own	O
Notebooks	O
without	O
Intel	B-Device
ME	I-Device
from	O
factory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Google	O
was	O
attempting	O
to	O
eliminate	O
proprietary	B-Application
firmware	O
from	O
its	O
servers	O
and	O
found	O
that	O
the	O
ME	O
was	O
a	O
hurdle	O
to	O
that	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
after	O
SA-00086	O
was	O
patched	O
,	O
vendors	O
for	O
AMD	O
processor	B-General_Concept
mainboards	B-Device
started	O
shipping	O
BIOS	O
updates	O
that	O
allow	O
disabling	O
the	O
AMD	B-Device
Platform	I-Device
Security	I-Device
Processor	I-Device
,	O
a	O
subsystem	O
with	O
similar	O
function	O
as	O
the	O
ME	O
.	O
</s>
