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Printer producer HP is doing all the things it will probably to forestall you from utilizing ink cartridges from third-party producers. The “unique” purpose: Utilizing unique ink protects customers from malware. Safety consultants have justified doubts
Printer producer HP has already had its fair proportion of controversies surrounding the usage of third-party ink. Final yr, for instance, such cartridges had been blocked on the firmware aspect, which in flip led to a lawsuit.
However what’s the official justification for HP’s ban on third-party cartridges? CEO Enrique Lores has given the US broadcaster CNBC an idiosyncratic rationalization for the process. In any case, the ban would truly shield clients, because the chips within the cartridges can function a gateway for malware
In keeping with this, HP has seen that viruses can now be embedded within the chips of the cartridges, which then infect the PC through the printer.
For that reason, HP has launched “Dynamic Safety “ which may assure buyer safety for unique ink cartridges. With third-party suppliers, then again, there is no such thing as a affect on your entire provide chain, which is why there’s a potential safety danger right here.
After the interview with Lores was printed, our colleagues at Ars Technica requested round amongst safety consultants, who, as anticipated, classify HP’s statements as “not likely true”.
There was a laboratory demonstration commissioned by HP in 2022 through which a researcher managed to use a buffer overflow in an HP printer utilizing a manipulated cartridge.
Nonetheless, consultants imagine that such an assault is unlikely for a number of causes. For instance, the quantity of information that may be saved on such a cartridge chip is extraordinarily small.
As well as, it appears absurd {that a} cartridge manipulated on this method would first be within the retailer for a number of weeks or months earlier than it might turn out to be energetic. There are additionally a lot simpler methods to infiltrate malware into printers themselves
Briefly, the hassle concerned in such an assault is solely not price it. Solely state Trojans with a focused location could be kind of believable. An efficient malware assault appears to be like totally different
The interval between the introduction of HP Dynamic Safety and the sector check with the manipulated cartridge additionally raises questions. In any case, there are six years between the safety characteristic and the supposedly confirmed danger from third-party cartridges.
As Ars Technica continues to put in writing, HP CEO Lores might be pursuing a distinct and broadly mentioned objective: Printing ought to turn out to be a subscription enterprise; if it isn’t already.
The precise printers are offered at low costs, however within the case of HP, the ink itself is offered by instantaneous ink subscription. With out this subscription, the printer generally even stops copying and scanning – a apply for which HP has already been sued!
In any case, clients who “don’t purchase HP ink or toner are a failed funding”. Accordingly, it’s hardly shocking that the printer producer is doing all the things it will probably to exclude clients from the opportunity of third-party cartridges.
Even other than the scandal surrounding third-party ink, HP has now misplaced a few of its good status from the flip of the millennium – for instance with Maxe, who can solely cease himself from smashing his HP printer by sheer pressure of will!
Now we want your opinion: Are you able to perceive HP’s reasoning or are you with me that the CEO statements are a home-made drawback? Do you continue to use HP printers in any respect or have you ever switched to a different producer? Tell us within the feedback!
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