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Remotely Compromising Android and iOS via a bug in Broadcom's WI-FI Chipsets

(blog.exodusintel.com)
387 points pedro84 | 3 comments | 26 Jul 17 19:51 UTC | HN request time: 0.669s | source
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thomastjeffery ◴[26 Jul 17 23:00 UTC] No.14861166[source]▶
Why does Broadcom insist on proprietary drivers?

How could it possibly be detrimental for Broadcom to have free software drivers?

This article is a poignant example that it is detrimental for them to continue to keep their drivers proprietary.

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whowouldathunk ◴[26 Jul 17 23:01 UTC] No.14861174[source]▶
The drivers are probably pretty complicated and thus valuable IP.
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thomastjeffery ◴[26 Jul 17 23:15 UTC] No.14861236[source]▶
I don't buy that.

Every wifi chipset has working drivers; therefore there is little to no value in Broadcom's driver as "IP".

Contrast that to the value of having a free driver that can receive security patches from anyone at any time.

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1. freyir ◴[27 Jul 17 01:45 UTC] No.14862004[source]▶
Every wifi chipset has working drivers

Every existing Wi-Fi chipset has working drivers. A startup begins from scratch, which is one more barrier to entry.

replies(1): >>14862140 #
2. justbuchanan ◴[27 Jul 17 02:11 UTC] No.14862140[source]▶
True, but there are many open-source wi-fi drivers out there already. Unless broadcom's implementation is something out of the ordinary, releasing their driver doesn't really change the game.
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3. cyphar ◴[27 Jul 17 06:11 UTC] No.14863022[source]▶
And experience with Broadcom's wireless drivers (and NFC chips) tells me that the only thing extraordinary about them is how awful and limited they are.