Live data from Hacker News

Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

reverse.put.as

11–20 of 38 posts

Re: Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

#11
Intel is only allowed to decrease the line-of-code count, not increase. It is 80,739 lines of code.

Elf support bloats everything.

A new graphics file bloats everything.

However, adding RedSea to Linux and removing ISO9660 and FAT32 reduces lines of code.

In other word, "Oh hell! no UEFI is banned, mother fuckers." Boot TempleOS instead of UEFI when RESET button is pressed.

God says... robotic dispute curmudgeons sinkers chilblain's probability's nightcaps acidity hardball Hell gorgeous Vazquez catalytic Ger prosecutor's caravan's shambled cancellation retold reptilian's Skype recessing hypnosis's Kr Casablanca's headlocks disinherits soapbox's goading ritually vignetted Jarred's

======

You need to copy ROM to RAM because TempleOS self modifies. RAM is faster, almost certainly.

Re: Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

#12

These could be insiders working at Apple support centers or even Apple itself. It makes me somewhat happy in a weird way to think that, even in notoriously locked-down and secretive companies like Apple, there are individuals who don't believe in and subvert the company's attempts to have sole control of its products. We have these individuals to thank for schematics, parts, and a lot of other material that feeds the…

In every major company there is unofficial price list for "services" in the support departments. Most often they are motivated by good old profit.

Re: Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

#13

These could be insiders working at Apple support centers or even Apple itself. It makes me somewhat happy in a weird way to think that, even in notoriously locked-down and secretive companies like Apple, there are individuals who don't believe in and subvert the company's attempts to have sole control of its products. We have these individuals to thank for schematics, parts, and a lot of other material that feeds the…

I'm not so sure the people selling SCBO files are the ones we'd consider the good guys. Or at least not based on their most likely buyers.

Re: Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

#17
post #5

Apple is doing a much better job than all the rest of the PC vendors. Even those vendors that I haven't published keygens for [1] have just stupendously unsound bypass mechanisms for BIOS passwords. [1] https://dogber1.blogspot.com/2009/05/table-of-reverse-engine...

Your list is 7 years old and relates to non-EFI bios implementations. It's hardly a valid comparison to a modern Apple bios as looked at here.

Re: Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

#18

Can someone please cut me to the chase?

Apple can create a file to reset the flash password (it does not require tampering with the physical flash chip). This password reset file is RSA signed, so third parties can't create one from scratch unless they have stolen Apple's private key (unlikely), or have contacts inside Apple willing to make the file for them (more likely—all it takes is one unscrupulous employee with access to the reset file generation program).

Re: Apple EFI firmware passwords and the SCBO myth

#20

These could be insiders working at Apple support centers or even Apple itself. It makes me somewhat happy in a weird way to think that, even in notoriously locked-down and secretive companies like Apple, there are individuals who don't believe in and subvert the company's attempts to have sole control of its products. We have these individuals to thank for schematics, parts, and a lot of other material that feeds the…

I'm not so sure the people selling SCBO files are the ones we'd consider the good guys. Or at least not based on their most likely buyers.

Correct, they're most likely allowing stolen computers to be used

Makes me wonder if their SCBO generating system is connected to their stolen serial number db (probably not)

Post reply on HN