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Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

theregister.com

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Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#121

Post by grugagag »

slimsag wrote: post #81
dastx wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> needs constant firmware updates Firmware updates are good. They can patch security issues and they can improve different aspects of the device. The security being the best plus obviously. Wholeheartedly agree that there is no reason for a company like Samsung to track your every move despite you paying them hundreds for said devive. I'd be very surprised if they don't make a hefty profit from such devices. So why t…

> Firmware updates are good. They [[can]] patch security issues and they can improve different aspects of the device. Emphasis mine - updates also remove features and introduce security issues. It's not cut-and-dry "updates are good" I am pretty sure my Samsung fridge update removed 3 of the limited ~12 or so apps it had in the first place.

If im not waiting for a big fix i avoid upgrades when possible for the reasons you mentioned above, thers nothing more annoying than an upgrade that downgrades features that were working just fine.

Im also doing some research before upgrading. Never the first to upgrade, i hate autoupdating software

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#122

Post by 13of40 »

dreamcompiler wrote: post #108
RandomBacon wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Vote with your wallet. Don't buy these internet devices. All it takes is for a visiting family member or friend who wants to watch Netflix while you're in another room/asleep/etc to click okay.

Wow. I hadn't thought of this vulnerability. Time to set up MAC address blacklists on my router.

If you're going to that sort of length, maybe just filter DNS requests from the TV to whitelist Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, etc. but block everything else. A custom router might go one step further and only whitelist outbound traffic to IP addresses that were previously resolved through DNS.

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#123

Post by Exmoor »

mirimir wrote: post #117
Mandatum wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unfortunately piracy is often a good answer to this type of issue. If your smart TV is not connected to the internet, or you're not browsing on a licensed platform riddled with DRM and tracking agents, there's no chance of that data leaving your house.

That's my answer. I'll never own a "smart TV", just decent gaming graphics with a large monitor.

It's essentially impossible to buy a consumer TV that's not "smart" these days. There are commercial TV's/monitors, but those are both expensive and also typically not focused on image quality.

Best solution is to "air gap" your TV by not connecting it your wifi or ethernet.

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#124

Post by mirimir »

Exmoor wrote: post #123
mirimir wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's my answer. I'll never own a "smart TV", just decent gaming graphics with a large monitor.

It's essentially impossible to buy a consumer TV that's not "smart" these days. There are commercial TV's/monitors, but those are both expensive and also typically not focused on image quality. Best solution is to "air gap" your TV by not connecting it your wifi or ethernet.

Why do I need a TV? Arbitrarily large monitors are available for gaming.

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#125

Post by Abishek_Muthian »

userbinator wrote: post #54

One thing you have to understand is that these internet-connected Blu-ray players in question are programmed to log their activities and send copies of this information to Samsung. In some ways, this is even more disturbing than the bricking. Only corporate greed can create a media player that watches you and needs constant firmware updates. I have a VCR and DVD player which still work, and things like this are the r…

You'll be surprised on how much crap Samsung packs into low-end & mid-end smartphones in India, especially since now the phones are made in India, available only in India(M-series).

The phones have major international data hoarder apps, their equivalent in India and their Samsung equivalent with its own app downloading services which masquerades as system updates to force the gullible into downloading Samsung apps even if you disable them.

The phones are very much subsidised for data hoarding.

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#126

Post by speedgoose »

mirimir wrote: post #124
Exmoor wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's essentially impossible to buy a consumer TV that's not "smart" these days. There are commercial TV's/monitors, but those are both expensive and also typically not focused on image quality. Best solution is to "air gap" your TV by not connecting it your wifi or ethernet.

Why do I need a TV? Arbitrarily large monitors are available for gaming.

TVs are much much more larger. But you don't need a TV obviously.

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#127

Post by [deleted] »

mirimir wrote: post #124
Exmoor wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's essentially impossible to buy a consumer TV that's not "smart" these days. There are commercial TV's/monitors, but those are both expensive and also typically not focused on image quality. Best solution is to "air gap" your TV by not connecting it your wifi or ethernet.

Why do I need a TV? Arbitrarily large monitors are available for gaming.

[deleted]

Re: Samsung Blu-ray players bricked because of an XML config file

#129

Post by renewiltord »

stefan_ wrote: post #71
renewiltord wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Presumably languages which default to optional instead of null with the default ergonomics being to “or_else” instead of “unwrap” will encourage safer error handling. It works for me, but I don’t know if it is yet well known what the effect of developer UX on error rate is.

Nope, you are still not making sense. Just look at the "Facebook remotely disables all apps" issue. Both times it was issues deserializing - the deserialization wasn't unsafe or outright crashing, it was simply the SDK wasn't prepared to deal with the data it got.

I find that I can write code that is less likely to crash or fail more easily in some languages than in others. If this is not the case for you, I understand that it isn't compelling but that's okay. Not particularly looking for you to adopt anything.

UX things in some languages guide me to idiomatic code that is safer. And as engineers, we know there is no guarantee, only shades of improvement. But again, if language choice does not affect your program quality, so be it.

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