Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

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

theregister.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

161–170 of 181 posts

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

#161

Post by Abishek_Muthian »

swiley wrote: post #149
Abishek_Muthian wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 ev…

I wouldn’t be surprised. I recently bought a low end android to use as a balloon tracker (which I didn’t realize was illegal until later) and had to wait around 10-20 minutes after connecting it to WiFi While it downloaded ~15 apps (some of which kept launching background services and crashing the phone because it would run out of memory.) I used to think consumer PCs were bad but holy cow, the way android enables ma…

>And in the name of protecting the user from malware they have no tools to deal with it

There are tools as the ecosystem is open and the community is extraordinarily talented, but it largely depends upon the device, whether the kernel source, driver blobs are available and boot loader can be unlocked; these were generally true for most devices from high profile manufacturers, but now things are changing as those manufacturers have ventured into $1000 smartphones and don't care for their enthusiast population.

Then again, new breed of pure Linux smartphones are available now. IMO, this should be the long term focus for any enthusiast wanting a free, open, secure mobile computing experience.

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

#162

Post by HelloNurse »

13of40 wrote: post #122
dreamcompiler wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Are Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Youtube etc. IP addresses stable enough to be whitelisted, er, allowlisted without frequent updates?

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

#163

Post by toast0 »

kelnos wrote: post #15
iforgotpassword wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In this case it wasn't even a firmware update that bricked the device. Just some meta data that told the device how to behave. So a factory reset should still have deleted that stupid XML file from the flash storage, which would totally have fixed the issue. Even with all the paranoia they could have had about reverting to an old firmware version and breaking copy protection through exploits. Just wipe the freaking f…

The one issue I can see with this if the original firmware has an outdated TLS trust store, reverting to the original firmware might make it impossible to update it via normal means. Whether or not this is good or bad is an exercise left up to the reader.

Samsung runs their own CA with a long expiration, so at least they aren't affected by trust store issues. Amazon had an issue with this on Kindles though, if you didn't online update your Kindle in time, you have to do an offline update -- i think that one might have been sha-2 signatueres rather than a CA expiration though --- not sure.

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

#164

Post by superhuzza »

dylan604 wrote: post #93
Johnny555 wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's worse than you think - it's not just your DVD player that's spying on you, but your TV is too -- many TV's use Automated Content Recognition to detect what you're watching regardless of source (DVD, over the air, streaming app, etc). They even detect commercials, and which language you're listening to. https://www.adexchanger.com/ad-exchange-news/the-marketers-g...

How do you think manufactures can afford to sell these large screens at such cheap prices. They continue to make money off of you long after the initial sale. I'm surprised they just don't give them away (except it would probably raise too many questions). Your digital cable boxes have been doing this for even longer.

>How do you think manufactures can afford to sell these large screens at such cheap prices.

TV prices have been falling for decades[1], long before manufacturers could truly benefit from the data provided by smart TVs. So other factors are probably much more important - such as cheaper materials, automated production, economies of scale etc.

Also, ad revenue wouldn't explain why "stupid" computer monitor prices have also fallen greatly during the same time period.

[1] https://u.osu.edu/zagorsky.1/2014/05/18/why-are-television-s...

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

#165

Post by Mandatum »

kd5bjo wrote: post #131
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.

> Best solution is to "air gap" your TV by not connecting it your wifi or ethernet. How long will it be before TVs embed a cellular modem with manufacturer-paid service to keep the smart features connected? “No setup, works straight out of the box” has to have at least some marketing value, after all.

This might work in the US, units sold in the EU would be litigated out of production. Who knows, maybe we'll see a homebrew market for EU-built apps for US TV's.

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

#166

Post by harry8 »

duncan_bayne wrote: post #154
harry8 wrote: post #69

You broke it, you bought it Samsung. Full refund. Pick up the device at your expense or provide disposal costs as well. Warranty is not any part of the issue if you come into my house and break a thing I own and is my property.

What makes you think that what they broke is your property? Read the EULA. It almost certainly specifies that what you think you own, has in fact just been licensed to you.

No. This is actually nonsense.

Nobody has read the Eula. Nobody has knowingly and willingly agreed to those terms (if they exist). No vendor has expected those terms to be read (if they even exist). No vendor has explained those terms to a customer.

There is a contract for exchange of ownership. You can't actually break that contract with unconscinable means such as fine print that nobody reads nor is expected to read nor has had explained.

Read a EULA if you like but it will do absolutely nothing for you nor will it alter the law and the application of the law. Maybe you'll enjoy the read though?

It is an item, purchased in a shop in exchange for money. There's rather a lot of established law about that.

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

#167

Post by mirimir »

m-p-3 wrote: post #156
mirimir wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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

And those manufacturers will double-down by scanning for an open wireless network and send the data stream without you knowing, or embed a cellular modem to bypass all that. It's a truly disgusting trend.

Seriously? Are there WiFi interfaces in monitors now?

It's been a while since I bought one, I admit.

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

#168

Post by mirimir »

speedgoose wrote: post #126
mirimir wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

I live in a 42 m^2 apartment, so I really don't need that large a monitor :)

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

#169

Post by mirimir »

NullPrefix wrote: post #153
jablan wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's exactly the point of 5G, if I understand it correctly.

Metal roof. Line walls with metallic insulation. There might be something available for the windows too.

For the walls and ceiling, prime with 2-3 coats of paint that contains carbon black and graphite. It's black, so several finish coats will be necessary. For the windows, use aluminum screening. That also works well on floors, under engineered wood flooring. Nylon plated with nickel and silver makes nice drapes.

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

#170

Post by SturgeonsLaw »

NullPrefix wrote: post #153
jablan wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's exactly the point of 5G, if I understand it correctly.

Metal roof. Line walls with metallic insulation. There might be something available for the windows too.

> There might be something available for the windows too

Yeah, uninstall it and install Linux ;)

Post reply on HN