Intel posts record results but warns on security flaws

Chipmaker Intel beat market expectations to report a record finish to 2017 – but the US giant also warned, for the first time, that fallout from recently discovered security flaws could prove damaging.

Intel posted fourth-quarter revenues of $17.1bn, up 4% on the same period in 2016, which helped push full-year revenues up 6% to $62.8bn.

Chief executive Brian Krzanich said: “2017 was a record year, with record fourth-quarter results driven by strong growth of our data-centric businesses. The strategic investments we’ve made in areas like memory, programmable solutions, communications and automonous driving are starting to pay off and expand Intels’s growth opportunity.”

Intel said 2018 revenues were on track to reach $65bn, ahead of earlier forecasts.

But the firm also conceded that recently discovered security vulnerabilities could hurt the company’s performance.

The so-called Spectre and Meltdown flaws were discovered in Intel’s chips late last year. The flaws could allow hackers to steal private data, including passwords, stored on desktops, laptops, mobile phones and in the cloud.

The emergence of Spectre and Meltdown caused worldwide concern among technology users and led to at least three class-action lawsuits. Plaintiffs claimed compensation for flaws and the resultant slowdown in their operations that patching computers for the bugs was expected to cause.

In its forward-looking statements, released with the full-year results, Intel said: “The publicity around recently disclosed security vulnerabilities may result in increased attempts by third parties to identify additional vulnerabilities, and future vulnerabilities and mitigation of those vulnerabilities may also adversely impact our results of operations, customer relationships and reputation.”

The company insisted, however, that its financial outlook had not changed and that it was working on software to fix the problem. Chips that have solutions designed into them will then be shipped later this year, it added.