[GRLUG] kill switches

[Adam Tauno Williams]

On Thu, 2008-10-16 at 15:23 -0700, John Harig wrote:
> After reading about kill switches on iphones now google seems to have
> one as well, and this article tries to explains why it is a good
> thing:
> http://www.pcworld.com/article/152383/why_androids_kill_switch_is_a_good_thing.html
> Are kill switches a good thing? 

Don't think it is "good" or "bad", I think it is just necessary.  And
every cell phone has the ultimate kill-switch:  the provider terminates
your service.   Since cell networks are both fragile and [now] necessary
to public safety I'd see the inability to nuke a rogue app as a serious
flaw.  As an admin of a large-ish network I, and I assume most others,
make sure various kill-switches (firewalls,...) are in place.

> If android is open-source, does that mean you can 
> clearly see how the kill-switch works? 

Possibly.  But it doesn't mean you can do anything about it.  The phone
will only run firmware that has been digitally signed (a *very* good
thing).  Imagine a malicious app that managed to alter the firmware of a
million phones....  Signed firmware means the phone will stop working if
it's firmware is corrupted [altered].   Cell phones these days contain a
treasure trove of personal information even besides the ability of a
collection of phones to wreak havoc on the network.

> Im a little wary of kill switches being installed on my personal devices.

It isn't a "personal device".  It is a device designed to be connected
to a public network.  The integrity of the network must be a
consideration.  Also the news story would probably read "Thousands of
Verizon users have their phones hi-jacked today...." so the carrier
needs to have a recourse since it will be their name dragged through the
mud.

> At least google openly admitted it

They get no virtue points for this from me;  if they hid it, it would be
bigger news when someone discovered it later.  And then it would seem
more nefarious.

> but should it even be there in the first place?

Yes.  If I was the admin of a cell network it is certainly a feature I'd
want.