California governor signs smartphone kill switch into law

[aGameOfThrones]

Well, it's official: following a drawn-out Senate voting process, California governor Jerry Brown has signed his state's smartphone kill switch bill into law. Companies wanting to sell handsets in the state now have to include a remote disabling option that lets you render a stolen device unusable. There are certain exceptions, primarily for incompatible older gear, but manufacturers face fines as high as $2,500 per phone if they don't follow the rules.

California isn't technically the first state to enact a kill switch measure; that honor belongs to Minnesota. However, the combination of a large population and an important role in the tech world will make this law tougher to ignore, since phone makers risk giving up a huge potential audience if they flout regulations. There isn't much danger of that happening when most major brands have already embraced the technology, but this should keep any stragglers in line. Is it a good idea? That's a tougher call -- while studies suggest that mandatory kill switches could save money by deterring crooks, there are concerns that the requirement could both hinder progress in anti-theft systems and complicate any phone launches. It's too late to back out, so we'll just have to see how this safeguard works in practice.



http://www.engadget.com/2014/08/25/california-kill-switch-becomes-law/

[Brian4Liberty]

And who pays for this?

[Mani]

Time to stock Pile phones without kill switches and sell them at the border. :p


Oh wait...then there will a war on phones w/o kill switches...Don't want to get shot or beat up or put in a chokehold by enforcers over a phone that doesn't meet California code.

[jclay2]

I could be wrong, but doesn't rooting the device completely destroy this law? I rooted my GSIII and it is so much better than the regular crapware/bloated phone they give you. You can tether, get rid of all the annoying adds on the free apps, and overclock/increase the speed of the phone. My wife bought a GS4 and didn't root it. She is jelous of the pictures and speed of my GSIII;).

[aGameOfThrones]

And who pays for this?


YOU! Hopefully they wont put the fee separate when selling a phone...


“We believe that the industry is overreacting,” Wade Luneburg of the MN State Council of UNITE HERE Unions told the Star Tribune this week. “Putting [minimum wage] fees on tickets and passing the cost on to consumers directly is strange at best, and creates an ‘us against them’ mentality while ordering dinner.”

[presence]

In before news of the stuxnet of smartphones perma bricks 100,000 devices in 24 hours.

[aGameOfThrones]

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vap2g2bYHg8/UaMcSFuEYyI/AAAAAAABkmQ/QX_jfV0Ywjg/s1600/hitler_06.gif

[56ktarget]

Non-newsworthy considering apple and samsung (two largest cell phone makers) already adopted this months ago. And govt already had this technology years ago. All this bill is doing is giving YOU the same power.

[acptulsa]

Non-newsworthy considering apple and samsung (two largest cell phone makers) already adopted this months ago.

Well I would hope they're competent enough to anticipate the California legislature's next bout of fruitiness and nuttiness.


And govt already had this technology years ago. All this bill is doing is giving YOU the same power.

Yeah? So, we have to reprove what we say every time we say it but you don't have to prove anything at all?

[56ktarget]

Actually read the article and then come back.

[acptulsa]

Actually read the article and then come back.

I've got a better idea. Make a point or go away.

[56ktarget]

I did, read my first comment and then come back.

[acptulsa]

You don't need me to jump through a hoop to get to the point.

All you have to do is take your cap off. But you won't...

[NorthCarolinaLiberty]

I did, read my first comment and then come back.

You know, you can go back to DU and just create another user name.

[acptulsa]

You know, you can go back to DU and just create another user name.

Well sure. But here being redundant as hell and never having a valid point to get to makes him unique!

[Mani]

Well sure. But here being redundant as hell and never having a valid point to get to makes him unique!


Awww, he's our lovable pet troll. He's just starved for attention, be nice guys.

[NorthCarolinaLiberty]

PRB troll seems to be scarce these days. Did he reinvent himself as 56ktarget?

[Root]

Awww, he's our lovable pet troll. He's just starved for attention, be nice guys.
Just give him some -rep red bar pet treats. That will make him happy.