Comment by hollerith | Hacker News Reader

Comment by hollerith | Hacker News Reader

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I don't think the "ethic" you are proposing (i.e., a consumer should have free choice of what software to install on their own device) has much bearing one way or the other on AI extinction risk.

Do you simply not care that this Linux computer that you have such warm feelings about is fairly easy to pwn (in part because of the lack of verified boot and in part because desktop Linux software is just much easier to pwn than the systems software on a Mac or a Chromebook or an iPhone or an Android phone) such that if you ever got to be an effective activist against some government or some powerful industrial interest, that government or industrial interest could fairly easily eavesdrop on everything you do with this Linux computer?

That doesn't sound much like protecting your individual rights.

>this Linux computer that you have such warm feelings about is fairly easy to pwn

It's just not. Otherwise, all servers would be running your beloved iOS, wouldn't they?

>in part because of the lack of verified boot

This does not matter. I can generate my own keys.

>easier to pwn [...] than [...]an iPhone

Lol... If anything, phones are more vulnerable because you have less access to sandboxes and VMs.

Hey, look, an Apple CVE from two days ago. https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-43284

And this one's from this month. https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-43300

And here's Apple's sandbox failing, last month. https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-43274

You're right. My loonixtard brain didn't grok this without your input. My device is going to be pwned because I didn't use a Microsoft verified image. Should I ever feel the need to start the revolution, I will make sure to use secure boot and use Microsoft windows using my employers account.

It appears that most PC makers didn't implement verified boot correctly (e.g., they negligently left sample keys in the firmware they shipped), which is why I avoided any mention of Windows in my previous comments.

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