"ZombieLoad": a new set of speculative-execution attacks

Blame the Arpanet, where passwords (FTP and Telnet) flew around unencrypted (and everyone on the Arpanet knew how to exploit that) and if the hacker wasn't patient enough for packet snooping, Finger provided a convenient backdoor to every system. Pre-Java and JavaScript, there was none of this executing random code over the Internet; you just downloaded the random code over the Internet (or, for many people, from the BBS).

Maybe the Internet could be better, but if billions of people are on the Internet, billions of people are going to be executing random code, either directly or by downloading it. Directly would be worse; maybe a world where the only way to run code on your computer for most people was download it from the **** Store might be safer, but not more free.