Huh
I thought that updates would fix things or add security. I have heard the if it ain’t broke don’t fix it before, I thought updates wouldn’t be done unless needed, I was wrong
That's the reason they're still using the same gear. It already works. If they bought new gear they couldn't be
sure it works, and it doesn't actually do anything that they actually need. For example, if you need to hammer in nails then you use a hammer whose design hasn't changed in probably 150 years. You don't need to buy the
latest hammer each few years.
Also a 1970s computer is much simpler and has much less code in it, there's just less that can go wrong and it's easier to prove that it's secure.
Look up attacks such as Meltdown, Spectre and Rowhammer. These are specific attacks that
only work on new processors or on recent memory chips, due to changes in processor design
https://meltdownattack.com/Meltdown for example was first fully disclosed in
2018, and is a vulnerability in roughly the last 20 years worth of CPUs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meltdown_(security_vulnerability)#OverviewRowhammer is a memory-hacking technique, which only works on newer memory modules, because there's less physical space between the components, so more signal bleeds over between them, and you can steal data this way
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Row_hammerSo, bugs creep in and may open up security holes and it may be decades before they're fully documented. If the Air Force had upgraded their gear with new CPUs from any time between ~1998 to 2018 the nuclear computers would have had the Meltdown vulnerability.