Questions about Heads, AEM, and infected firmware

User Support
1

I’m looking at getting a Librem 14 and using Qubes as my daily driver so I can remain secure and compartmentalize my identities. But I don’t think I can use Qubes 24/7. I may need to use another live OS for video editing and maybe some gaming. In doing so, I’m aware I’d be at risk of infecting my firmware thus compromising my entire system. So, I have a few questions.

  1. Is Heads a good alternative to Anti-Evil Maid in terms of security and functionality?

  2. I’ve heard that either Heads and/or AEM are actually vulnerable and essentially useless. Is this rumour true? If so, what sort of vulnerabilities are there?

  3. Wouldn’t Heads alert me if my firmware/BIOS were infected? I know it doesn’t prevent it, but it would at least alert me, right?

  4. Not really related to Qubes but does anyone have any suggestions for which live OS I should use for video editing and gaming? I mean in terms of security, if there’s a way I can lock it down to avoid compromising my machine. I know nothing will be as good as Qubes but I’m looking for the next best thing which won’t have a huge impact on performance.

1 Like
2

Yes, it seems nobody found anything wrong in it in a recent topic.

See above.

Yes, this is what the manual says.

This topic fits the new category on the forums, which is not created yet (and you don’t have high enough Trust Level yet). However, note that you can in theory use Qubes for those things, too if you do GPU passthrough.

Update: The new category is created: https://forum.qubes-os.org/c/all-around-qubes/25.

2 Likes
3

However, note that you can in theory use Qubes for those things, too if you do GPU passthrough.

Would that apply to the Librem 14 which only uses integrated graphics?

4

Sorry, @derfail we generally keep off-topics out of the forum, though this may change. Hope you understand.

5

Probably not, you are right.