3 things you can do to protect yourself against the 'Meltdown' and 'Spectre' chip flaws

Now that some of the dust is settling surrounding the discovery of two critical design flaws in computer chips running inside a huge number of devices, we can start looking for ways to protect ourselves.

Fortunately, it shouldn't be too hard for most users to take the required measures to protect themselves from the flaws, which have been named "Meltdown" and "Spectre."

There's one thing to keep in mind, however: You have to update your operating system, the chip inside your computer, as well as your web browser. You can't just pick one, as it won't fully protect you against the bugs.

Still, it's likely that some people with a poor track record of updating their PCs won't take the proper measures. If you know someone who puts off updating their PCs, make sure to show them these steps!

There's been some speculation regarding the updates that will protect PC users against these bugs and a potential impact on performance of their PCs. Little is known so far, but Intel states that the impacts won't be significant and will be "mitigated over time."

See how to protect your PC against "Meltdown" and "Spectre":