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How is it not obvious to everyone reading HN that janky Android "TV" boxes (like the article references) are a by-default threat? Like seriously, many of them

How is it not obvious to everyone reading HN that janky Android "TV" boxes (like the article references) are a by-default threat? Like seriously, many of them are sold for stupid cheap prices like $5/ea. Or advertise unlimited movies/shows/etc for similarly unbelievable prices. Putting aside the copyright infringement aspect of it, to me it's extremely obvious "wait... _why_ am I paying so little here?". No, it's not because movies and shows are 99.9999% profit (spoiler: they aren't), it's because you're _paying_ to install a backdoor that will rip and tear everything on your network it can. You like having a credit card? That's precious, it's mine now. Look at me, I'm the network now.

kadoban 10mo ago
> it's because you're _paying_ to install a backdoor that will rip and tear everything on your network it can. I mean, maybe. More likely imo you're paying for the absolute cheapest hardware and fastest never-updated software someone could throw together and make _any_ profit on. Someone probably had 100k shitty little chips sitting in a warehouse and this was a way to do something with them. The outcome is really the same, it's just the steps to get there are more human nature.
- BloodyIron 10mo ago
  At a price tag of $5/ea the cost of just advertising and distribution exceeds the cost of the product itself. There is zero room for profit. The business model is installing back doors to the "clients" and stealing money, information, and anything else from them. Consider that even the cost of the included remote is a huge part of the actual hardware cost, and nobody is going to buy something like this without a remote.
- kube-system 9mo ago
  Even many TVs with "reputable" western brand names, on the shelf at major US retailers, are often sold at a loss on the hardware and the difference is made up by collecting advertising data. https://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2024/11/18/tv-companies-selling-sets-at-a-loss-for-advertising-rewards https://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2024/11/18/tv-companies-sell... > you just have to look at the finances of Vizio or Roku to see they’re selling TVs at somewhere between -3 and -7% margin
  - BloodyIron 9mo ago
    Wow those negative margins are WILD!
GolfPopper 9mo ago
>you're _paying_ to install a backdoor that will rip and tear everything on your network it can* How is this different from buying hardware and software from big market players?
- lubujackson 9mo ago
  *Samsung Core Features has the chat.*
- electroglyph 9mo ago
  they just steal different things
- touristtam 9mo ago
  Brand damage; The big players have more to loose from being caught installing backdoors on devices sold to the general public, and will probably put in something in the T&Cs to deflect their responsibilities.
- based2 9mo ago
  https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/texas-court-blocks-samsung-from-tracking-tv-viewing-then-vacates-order/ https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/texas-court-b... > https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46546270 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46546270
themafia 9mo ago
It's quite obvious to everyone here. Why it's not obvious to every Senator and Representative in our Government is frustrating to an extreme. We really do need to end our enhance our trade protections one way or another.
- reactordev 9mo ago
  Money talks
- 23434dsf 9mo ago
  Some people love money more than they love you
- JasonADrury 9mo ago
  >Why it's not obvious to every Senator and Representative in our Government is frustrating to an extreme. Why? How does this impact your life enough to be that frustrating?
toast0 9mo ago
> Or advertise unlimited movies/shows/etc for similarly unbelievable prices. I mean, it's pretty obvious the services are paid piracy. But it's got to cost something to pull VOD movies from wherever and serve them with an http server limited at 8 mbps even for content that exceeds that. Obviously someone doesn't want the content they stole to be easy to steal... too bad you can't reasonably play it either. :P
nextzck 9mo ago
Shit man my Pet Feeder setup a back door to my network.. ended up reverse engineering the entire tuya piece of shit just so I could keep the automatic feeder running. Fucking everyone is spying. I started downloading and decrypting apps from the App Store. It’s a god damn nightmare. Random apps are storing keys in the keychain (thanks expo!) that never leave our apple account. They follow us forever. You can’t delete them. Well.. there’s one way but it involves backing up your phone, putting it in recovery mode, and restoring from backup.

kadoban 10mo ago

> it's because you're _paying_ to install a backdoor that will rip and tear everything on your network it can. I mean, maybe. More likely imo you're paying for the absolute cheapest hardware and fastest never-updated software someone could throw together and make _any_ profit on. Someone probably had 100k shitty little chips sitting in a warehouse and this was a way to do something with them. The outcome is really the same, it's just the steps to get there are more human nature.

BloodyIron 10mo ago
At a price tag of $5/ea the cost of just advertising and distribution exceeds the cost of the product itself. There is zero room for profit. The business model is installing back doors to the "clients" and stealing money, information, and anything else from them. Consider that even the cost of the included remote is a huge part of the actual hardware cost, and nobody is going to buy something like this without a remote.
kube-system 9mo ago
Even many TVs with "reputable" western brand names, on the shelf at major US retailers, are often sold at a loss on the hardware and the difference is made up by collecting advertising data. https://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2024/11/18/tv-companies-selling-sets-at-a-loss-for-advertising-rewards https://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2024/11/18/tv-companies-sell... > you just have to look at the finances of Vizio or Roku to see they’re selling TVs at somewhere between -3 and -7% margin
- BloodyIron 9mo ago
  Wow those negative margins are WILD!

GolfPopper 9mo ago

>you're _paying_ to install a backdoor that will rip and tear everything on your network it can* How is this different from buying hardware and software from big market players?

lubujackson 9mo ago
*Samsung Core Features has the chat.*
electroglyph 9mo ago
they just steal different things
touristtam 9mo ago
Brand damage; The big players have more to loose from being caught installing backdoors on devices sold to the general public, and will probably put in something in the T&Cs to deflect their responsibilities.
based2 9mo ago
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/texas-court-blocks-samsung-from-tracking-tv-viewing-then-vacates-order/ https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/texas-court-b... > https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46546270 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46546270

themafia 9mo ago

It's quite obvious to everyone here. Why it's not obvious to every Senator and Representative in our Government is frustrating to an extreme. We really do need to end our enhance our trade protections one way or another.

reactordev 9mo ago
Money talks
23434dsf 9mo ago
Some people love money more than they love you
JasonADrury 9mo ago
>Why it's not obvious to every Senator and Representative in our Government is frustrating to an extreme. Why? How does this impact your life enough to be that frustrating?

toast0 9mo ago

> Or advertise unlimited movies/shows/etc for similarly unbelievable prices. I mean, it's pretty obvious the services are paid piracy. But it's got to cost something to pull VOD movies from wherever and serve them with an http server limited at 8 mbps even for content that exceeds that. Obviously someone doesn't want the content they stole to be easy to steal... too bad you can't reasonably play it either. :P

nextzck 9mo ago

Shit man my Pet Feeder setup a back door to my network.. ended up reverse engineering the entire tuya piece of shit just so I could keep the automatic feeder running. Fucking everyone is spying. I started downloading and decrypting apps from the App Store. It’s a god damn nightmare. Random apps are storing keys in the keychain (thanks expo!) that never leave our apple account. They follow us forever. You can’t delete them. Well.. there’s one way but it involves backing up your phone, putting it in recovery mode, and restoring from backup.