Comment by acdha

Comment by acdha a day ago

2 replies

> If you replaced the iPhone's 4500mAh battery with a 3500mAh one containing RDX and a 3G radio, you'd have to be mega-paranoid before you noticed the difference.

There’s a 0% chance Apple wouldn’t detect that. A huge difference in battery life like that would fail QC and even the weight would have to be very close before it wouldn’t be flagged for inspection. The liability for battery fires means so dude at the factory isn’t just saying “probably fine” and using them anyway.

> Apple's hardware security, much like their software security, is mostly predicated on marketing and not the transparent or accountable defense of your device.

Have you personally audited it, or are we just being asked to accept this because it would support your tribal affinities?

talldayo a day ago

> There’s a 0% chance Apple wouldn’t detect that.

They don't have to. This could be an entirely aftermarket addition, feasibly even with functional battery DRM. I (and probably nobody here) expect Apple to be putting RDX in every iPhone, but it's entirely feasible for a targeted attack.

> are we just being asked to accept this because it would support your tribal affinities?

You are being asked to accept this because the Mossad and Israeli tech industry are the foremost exporters of iPhone hardware and software exploits. We've already seen how Apple vs. the Israeli state goes, and it apparently ends with Israel selling hardware exploits to American law enforcement: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellebrite

  • acdha a day ago

    Now you’re talking a much more expensive operation since you need to have a substantial amount of skilled labor, tools, and parts, and also convince people that it’s okay that their phones are warning them that they don’t have a genuine battery and only 75% capacity. That seems unlikely to make for a successful mass attack with so many easier options available.

    > We've already seen how Apple vs. the Israeli state goes, and it apparently ends with Israel selling hardware exploits to American law enforcement

    Well, that used to be true but it’s not anymore:

    https://www.404media.co/leaked-docs-show-what-phones-cellebr...