According to The Register, Dell is warning customers to expect malware penetration on its server motherboards.

The problem came to light in the PowerEdge R410 Rack server when it was found to have spyware embedded in its systems management software.

Dell is currently in the process of warning customers of the danger by sending letters and also telephoning those affected.

The company has not yet released an official statement on the problem, but is expected to do so within the coming days.

A Dell support staffer has however stated that the issue did not affect their PowerEdge servers shipped from their factories, only affecting a small number of replacement motherboards namely the PowerEdge R310, PowerEdge R410, PowerEdge R510 and PowerEdge T410.

“The maximum potential exposure is less than 1% of these server models,” he said. He also stated that the malware would not infect non-Windows operating systems.