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As you may well be aware if you regularly read these pages, the Switch has been subject to a number of concerning hacking attempts that could not only harm Nintendo itself thanks to emulation software, but - in some cases - have also been harming other users. It would appear that Nintendo may have taken one crucial step in combatting some of these attempts, however.

Earlier this year it was widely documented that the Switch was "completely compromised" when it comes to security. A hacker who had actually praised the console's security efforts, on the whole, went on to explain that the Switch was vulnerable due to its reliance on Nvidia's Tegra hardware. The exploit is reportedly in the bootrom of a chip which is incapable of being patched via an online update, therefore meaning that the issue could only be addressed manually at console-production level.

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The hardware involved doesn't need to be changed, but physical access to the unit is required to fix the issue. Reports are now suggesting that new Switch units are arriving at retailers that have fixed this problem, theoretically preventing people from using the bootrom bug that could be used to run homebrew code and, in turn, emulators.

From the point of view of your average consumer, these new units won't have any impact on your use and enjoyment of the console if they are indeed now on the market. The new systems will still act in exactly the same way as the current models do, and the changes under the hood won't be noticeable at all.

Here's hoping that Nintendo has made a positive step towards securing the Switch once and for all.

[source gonintendo.com]