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White hat hackers leave Chrome OS unscathed at Pwnium 3

White hat hackers who entered in the Pwnium 3 competition weren't able to exploit the Chrome OS using the Series 5 550 Chromebook target device. Does this make you happier with your Chromebook Pixel purchase?
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March 9, 2013
Samsung Series 5 550
We've come a long ways since the Samsung Series 5 of 2012.
Hackers taking part in Google’s Pwnium challenge in its first two years found vulnerabilities in Chrome, and Google promptly rolled out updates to fix them, which made the software stronger than it was before. For the Chrome OS-focused Pwnium 3, entrants could not show a working exploit on the Series 5 550 target machine.

The fact that entrants couldn’t exploit the target machine compliments Google’s initiative to keep Chrome as secure as possible. The downside is that whatever holes there are left remain undiscovered. While the Chrome OS may have stayed strong, the standard Chrome browser, Firefox and Internet Explorer were exploited in the Pwn2Own that was in tandem with the Pwnium 3 challenge.

Regardless, Chromebook Pixel owners should be much happier with their purchases after seeing how secure the Chrome OS is. It may not be free from exploits, but the challenge proves the Chrome OS to be very secure. While it may be secure, no doubt hackers will be encouraged to try and exploit the Chrome OS on their own after hearing how entrants weren’t able to exploit it.

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