Lenovo does it again as LSE component removed after security fears

Chinese company releases firmware update after fears new problem software could, as with Superfish, be used to let hackers access vulnerable computers

Six months after apologising to users for pre-installing security-busting malware Superfish on its consumer laptops, Chinese PC manufacturer Lenovo has again had to remove another pre-installed component from its laptops over security fears.

But this time, the problem software, called the "Lenovo Service Engine (LSE)", is built into the firmware of the laptops themselves, in a low-level operating system called the BIOS, invisible even to Windows. (The BIOS is what is running the screens of white-on-black text seen on many computers as they start up). It launches when the computer is turned on, before Windows loads, and then replaces Microsoft's start-up diagnostics program (which ensures that the system was shut down properly, that the disk isn't corrupted, and that it's safe to launch Windows) with its own.