sumdumguy is right,

Yes, silver is electrically conductive, whereas the white gunk is not. You should be safe with the pins as you will install the processor first, so they will be protected. Just be careful not to get it on the motherboard.

If you do clean it off very thoroughly with isopropyl alcohol (NO you may not drink some ) or trichoethylene 1-1-1. Use cotton buds/Q-tips.

Cheers