by goku12 | 2025-08-26 15:36:30+00:00
> so you're actually advocating for drm like control here.

Absolutely not. I'm saying that the hardware shouldn't have that capability at all in the first place. But whatever. Don't restrict it. Those functionalities are usually under the control of the kernel. If the user is smart enough to tinker with the subsystems at that level, they're also smart enough to deal with the consequences of its misuse. That isn't a good justification to just lock down devices like this. The harm that comes out of that is much worse than what anyone can do with an RF baseband chip.

> That same user who forgets passwords and recovery keys all the time and loses all access to documents when a device breaks? And you're presuming giving that kind of person who doesn't understand sh*t about backups, device security etc full access to their devices will not result in a lot of compromised devices?

Yeah, so? It's not like such a person is ever going to unlock a complex safety lock. Examples for that exist already. Who can sideload an app into a fresh Android device without enabling the developer mode and then installing the APK through ADB? Dumb users won't ever persist enough to reach there. To take it further, the user can be given the root key to the secure boot chain on a piece of paper with the explicit instruction to not share it with anyone or even use it if they don't know how to. Ordinary users can then go on about their day as if it is fully locked down. It's unfair to deny the control of the device to the smart user, when such a security is possible. The existence of a dumb user is not an excuse to lock out smart users.

> but they have an interest in a secure reputation, which the majority of dumb users or eavesdropping governments do not have.

I guess you haven't seen the spyware that OEMs ship with the android devices. Even Samsung is notorious for it - especially on their smart TVs. I'm not going to talk at all about the Chinese OEMs. For that matter, it's very hard for a normal user to even uninstall facebook - an app that's known to collect information from the device that it doesn't need. Manufacturers caring for their security reputation was some 20 years ago. Only Apple does it these days, just because it's their highlight feature. But even they tried once to ship off images on the phone to iCloud without the users' permission to 'check it for csam'. The rest treat it like a portable spying device on steroids.

> There are more reasons to distrust the user. I don't buy greed is the only relevant one.

Trusting the user isn't the manufacturer's prerogative. It's supposed to be the user's property once they pay for it. You are insisting on the manufacturer retaining control even afterwards - something I and many others vehemently oppose as unfair and scummy. Now if you are worried about the security reputation, proven methods exist that allow the smart users to take full control of the device while preventing regular users from shooting their own foot. But OEMs and their apologists pretend that the problem is entirely on the user side and the only solution is to lock it down in a block of glue. And there is one good reason for this ignorance, oversight and denial - greed. Retaining control over the end device forever allows them to squeeze users for their every last penny. I will need another epic post just to enumerate the ways in which the control over the end devices allows them to do so. But I'm not going to do that because HN has entire stories and discussions on each of those topics.