RF Hacking Banned and Cashless Fiat Loving Statists

[grarpamp]

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/03/11/eu_directive_ban_rf_radio_firmware_tinkering

The EU is looking to block users from tinkering the firmware/software
of their RF devices. This seems to have been very under reported, with
a fairly short consultation period that has now expired. It could
force manufacturers to lock down phones and routers etc to stop you
from installing the likes of Lineage OS or OpenWRT. The way this is
written it could stop devices like laptops or Raspberry Pi's having
their software changed. From the report: The controversy centres on
Article 3(3)(i) of the EU Radio Equipment Directive, which was passed
into law back in 2014. However, an EU working group is now about to
define precisely which devices will be subject to the directive -- and
academics, researchers, individual "makers" and software companies are
worried that their activities and business models will be outlawed.
Article 3(3)(i) states that RF gear sold in the EU must support
"certain features in order to ensure that software can only be loaded
into the radio equipment where the compliance of the combination of
the radio equipment and software has been demonstrated." If the law is
implemented in its most potentially harmful form, no third-party
firmware could be installed onto something like a home router, for
example.


https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/talkingtech/2019/03/09/dont-ditch-cash-yet-but-paying-venmo-phones-cards-future/3110706002/
https://news.slashdot.org/story/19/03/11/050247/usa-today-tech-columnist-millennials-will-live-to-see-a-cashless-world

 "I haven't had a nickel, dime, quarter or penny in my pocket for two
years," writes USA Today tech columnist Jefferson Graham, adding "Why
bother? We're now living in what's quickly becoming a cashless
society, where credit cards or electronic payments on your phone
rule."
His column is addressed to the mayor of Philadelphia, who this week
signed a bill that bans cashless stores. Mr. Mayor. It's happening all
over the world, and not just from Amazon. We are going cashless. Maybe
not in your lifetime, but certainly for millennials. Banks and credit
card companies want this to curb the costs of handling green. Selected
merchants are into it now... USA Today's Charisse Jones discovered
that cash purchases were down to 30 percent of all retail transactions
as of last year compared to 40 percent in 2012. Millennials, she noted
here this week, are saying no to cash, with 21 percent of those 23- to
34 years old saying that most of their transactions were in cash in
2016....
Mobile pay is still a sliver of overall retail sales, but it's
definitely on the rise. Target, a long holdout, just added Apple Pay
to one of its options, following in the footsteps of Best Buy, CVS,
Costco and other retail giants who now accept payment via iPhone. The
big, lone holdout right now is Walmart, the No. 1 retailer. It does
have its own mobile pay app, that links bank payments to QR codes. And
Mr. Mayor, good news for you. Walmart still accepts cash, too.
But for how long?