Android tablets at Best Buy, Target, Amazon, Walmart found to include major security flaws, malware

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  • Reply 41 of 177
    idreyidrey Posts: 647member
    Caveat emptor.

    ["It works just like an iPad."  "But it cost 1/4 the price of an iPad?" "Yes!" "Oh, boy!"... if it sounds too good to be true... (how many of these sayings do I have to put up here. Stuff I've been hearing since I could understand language.) ]

    Touché! But Most people are pretty ignorant and these sale people can be very convincing!

    P.S thanks for the bussiness, commerce lesson!
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  • Reply 42 of 177

    If I go out to buy furniture and I have a choice between a $200 couch and a $500 couch but I take the $200 to save money... you sure as hell won't find me complaining about the legs falling off of it a year later. Maybe some people are that stupid but I have always known that when you buy cheap crap there are always going to be problems with it that are not apparent to the eye.

    Victims? What bullshit.

    And what if that $200 coach, which you knew was going to include cheap components and construction literally had bugs in it that the manufacturer knew about and the retailer turned their head so they could make a quick profit?

    Or what if the material caused severe skin rashes (which I'd rather have than my data stolen from using an insecure device)?

    Or what if you bought a $20k car which turned out to have a fault and you got in an accident; would you want to be told by some douchbag in a $120k car that you shouldn't have cheaped out on it, or if you were should have understood every fucking thing about the design and construction of the object before you buy?

    Bottom line: They expect a cheap tablet. They don't expect a harmful tablet.
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  • Reply 43 of 177
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by sflocal View Post

     

    This reminds me of an incident a while back at a client-site.  A tech approached me complaining that his tablet couldn't connect to the WiFi network.  The tablet he handed me was some cheap-shit Chinese knockoff-tablet that with the exception of it being all plastic, looked like an iPad.  Cheapa$$ bought it online for $60.  The tablet was so painful to use, it was more an old palm-pilot tactile-style screen than a "touch" screen.  After an hour of troubleshooting, I gave up.  Nothing worked on that tablet.  He blamed the WiFi network, until I pulled-out my iPad and connected with zero issues.  I asked him why he didn't at least buy something more remotely better, like a Galaxy tablet and he looked at me straight-faced and said those were too expensive.  I responded that between my time wasted, and his, he could have purchased a quality tablet and be done with it.  To this day, he still couldn't get his money back because the company was based in China and essentially told him he was on his own.



    So you get what you pay for.  If you can't afford the real thing, you're better off not buying crap to begin with.



    Shame on these manufacturers for putting out sheer garbage.  The consumer as well shares a lot of the blame as well.  I've heard time-and-time again from non-tech-savvy people that they bought their $50 tablet because they were told "The salesguy said it's just like an iPad, just cheaper!".  Well... serves them right, and I essentially walk away from them.



    The sad part is that there are resources being put in to build this junk, which ends up becoming landfill-material.  Is this the pride-and-joy of the Chinese knockoff community?  Keep churning out junk cuz buying 5 tablets is still cheaper than an iPad?  Really?


     

     

    I had a similar thing happen this past weekend. My daughter got invited to a sleepover with friends from school (12 year olds). She asked if she could bring her iPad along so I checked with the parents of her friend to see what they were planning and if it was OK. The father said sure, since his daughter had a tablet and they could play games. At this time I also asked for a birthday gift suggestion as my daughter didn't know what to buy her friend. Since we were talking about tablets I suggested an iTunes gift card so she could buy what she wanted.

     

    The father replied she had an Android tablet so I suggested a Google Play gift card and explained it was just like an iTunes card, but for Android. My daughters friend was happy to get the gift card so she could buy some games. Everything's fine. Or so I thought. Monday after school my daughter told me the gift card wouldn't work. They followed the instructions on the gift card for redemption (which explains how to redeem from within the Google app on your device) but they don't have this app. Crap, I never thought of asking if their tablet had Google Play or if it was a brand name tablet (like a Samsung). Obviously they had a cheap Android tablet which lacked Google Play. So there's $25 down the drain for a gift card and my daughters friend just realized she has a crappy tablet.

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  • Reply 44 of 177
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by island hermit View Post

     

     

     

    If I go out to buy furniture and I have a choice between a $200 couch and a $500 couch but I take the $200 to save money... you sure as hell won't find me complaining about the legs falling off of it a year later. Maybe some people are that stupid but I have always known that when you buy cheap crap there are always going to be problems with it that are not apparent to the eye.

     

    Victims? What bullshit.


     

    Bullshit is what I just read. Nobody expects when you buy something cheap it will perform as good as something expensive. I can go to The Keg for a steak and I know it's going to be good. If I go to McDonalds and get an "Angus Burger" I don't expect it to taste as good as my Keg steak.

     

    However, I have the right to eat at both restaurants and not get a case of food poisoning or ingest e-coli. You don't seem to be able to grasp the difference between a customers right to choose products at different price points while still buying something that's "safe".

     

    Android tablets are CHEAP and UNSAFE. One is acceptable. The other is not.

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  • Reply 45 of 177
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post





    And what if that $200 coach, which you knew was going to include cheap components and construction literally had bugs in it that the manufacturer knew about and the retailer turned their head so they could make a quick profit?



    Or what if the material caused severe skin rashes (which I'd rather have than my data stolen from using an insecure device)?



    Or what if you bought a $20k car which turned out to have a fault and you got in an accident; would you want to be told by some douchbag in a $120k car that you shouldn't have cheaped out on it, or if you were should have understood every fucking thing about the design and construction of the object before you buy?



    Bottom line: They expect a cheap tablet. They don't expect a harmful tablet.

     

    If I bought an iPad and it had bugs in it then I would be pissed.

     

    If I bought something that was 1/4 the cost of the iPad then I would expect everything that came with it.

     

    Same with your car example. We just bought a brand new car for $20,000. You can't buy another car in its class for under $20,000. If someone had said, "Hey, this is a brand new brand X car worth $20,000... I can give it to you for $5000!". I'd tell him to stick it up his ass. I would expect every problem imaginable.

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  • Reply 46 of 177

    I had a similar thing happen this past weekend. My daughter got invited to a sleepover with friends from school (12 year olds). She asked if she could bring her iPad along so I checked with the parents of her friend to see what they were planning and if it was OK. The father said sure, since his daughter had a tablet and they could play games. At this time I also asked for a birthday gift suggestion as my daughter didn't know what to buy her friend. Since we were talking about tablets I suggested an iTunes gift card so she could buy what she wanted.

    The father replied she had an Android tablet so I suggested a Google Play gift card and explained it was just like an iTunes card, but for Android. My daughters friend was happy to get the gift card so she could buy some games. Everything's fine. Or so I thought. Monday after school my daughter told me the gift card wouldn't work. They followed the instructions on the gift card for redemption (which explains how to redeem from within the Google app on your device) but they don't have this app. Crap, I never thought of asking if their tablet had Google Play or if it was a brand name tablet (like a Samsung). Obviously they had a cheap Android tablet which lacked Google Play. So there's $25 down the drain for a gift card and my daughters friend just realized she has a crappy tablet.

    If you never considered if Google Play the average customer would never consider that. I've been annoyed with Google allowing all of it to be marketed as Android. It seems clear to me it makes Android "First Class" seem bigger than without all the other crap in their ecosystem.
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  • Reply 47 of 177
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post

     

    How does that saying go again? You get what you pay for!

     

    I don't feel sorry for anybody who is ignorant and buys one of these cheap Android tablets.




    I do. Many people do not have any access to digital devices, especially the disadvantaged. Yes, these folks tend to be digitally naive -- yes ignorant. So, here we have million or billion dollar retailers who are willingly and knowingly pawning off cheap (affordable) malware infested unsecure devices to people who just need a break. 

     

    Okay, for those who could afford an iPad and are merely anti-apple and cheap to boot -- yeah, I'd say serves you right -- but not for those people who, though they should know better, trust big name wealthy American businesses. 

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  • Reply 48 of 177
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by EricTheHalfBee View Post

     

     

    Bullshit is what I just read. Nobody expects when you buy something cheap it will perform as good as something expensive. I can go to The Keg for a steak and I know it's going to be good. If I go to McDonalds and get an "Angus Burger" I don't expect it to taste as good as my Keg steak.

     

    However, I have the right to eat at both restaurants and not get a case of food poisoning or ingest e-coli. You don't seem to be able to grasp the difference between a customers right to choose products at different price points while still buying something that's "safe".

     

    Android tablets are CHEAP and UNSAFE. One is acceptable. The other is not.


     

    If McDonalds is selling burgers for $2 and some guy down the road is selling the same burgers for 50¢... and I choose the 50¢ burger then I can expect everything that I get.

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  • Reply 49 of 177
    If I bought an iPad and it had bugs in it then I would be pissed.

    If I bought something that was 1/4 the cost of the iPad then I would expect everything that came with it.

    Same with your car example. We just bought a brand new car for $20,000. You can't buy another car in its class for under $20,000. If someone had said, "Hey, this is a brand new brand X car worth $20,000... I can give it to you for $5000!". I'd tell him to stick it up his ass. I would expect every problem imaginable.

    You're making a fallacies argument that the price of the object is pre-determined and then that item is then dropped by 3/4th. That's not what's happening. This about knowing you're getting worse HW and construction, but not knowing you're getting malware and back doors.
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  • Reply 50 of 177
    droidftwdroidftw Posts: 1,009member
    No name brand knock-off devices are actually just cheap crap?! Thanks DED for this eye opening article! Way to dig deep and blow the lid off of this one! /s
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  • Reply 51 of 177
    If McDonalds is selling burgers for $2 and some guy down the road is selling the same burgers for 50¢... and I choose the 50¢ burger then I can expect everything that I get.

    Let's use your burger example. A sitdown burger joint has $12 burger and a fast food place has one for $1. Now you expect a larger and better burger at sitdown place, along with better ambiance and what have you, but you don't expect to get e.Coli at either place.

    What we need an FDA-like organization that can randomly test these devices to make sure they are safe. If not, thy come off the shelves.
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  • Reply 52 of 177
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post





    You're making a fallacies argument that the price of the object is pre-determined and then that item is then dropped by 3/4th. That's not what's happening. This about knowing you're getting worse HW and construction, but not knowing you're getting malware and back doors.

     

    ... and I'm also saying you get what you pay for.

     

    You want quality then pay more. If I buy a $500 Android tablet then I will bitch and complain if it isn't secure... I could have bought an iPad. If I buy a $150 tablet then I will accept whatever bullshit comes along with it.

     

    What you are saying is that a person should be able to pay $150 and get everything that comes with a $500 tablet. Bullshit! Security is one of those things you leave at the door when you cheap out.

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  • Reply 53 of 177
    droidftw wrote: »
    No name brand knock-off devices are actually just cheap crap?! Thanks DED for this eye opening article! Way to dig deep and blow the lid off of this one! /s

    You had no idea how much malware is installed on these systems before the article.
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  • Reply 54 of 177
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post





    Let's use your burger example. A sitdown burger joint has $12 burger and a fast food place has one for $1. Now you expect a larger and better burger at sitdown place, along with better ambiance and what have you, but you don't expect to get e.Coli at either place.

     

    OFFS.

     

    I'm not buying the $12 burger... I'm buying the fucking $1 burger... the same burger thast is offered at BK, Wendy's, A&W... you name it... but if some guy down the road wants to sell me the $12 burger for $4 or the $1 burger for 25¢ then I know that something is fucked up.

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  • Reply 55 of 177
    droidftwdroidftw Posts: 1,009member
    solipsismy wrote: »
    Let's use your burger example. A sitdown burger joint has $12 burger and a fast food place has one for $1. Now you expect a larger and better burger at sitdown place, along with better ambiance and what have you, but you don't expect to get e.Coli at either place.
    After a 2 day power outage in a major metropolitan area I was approached by a man selling discount steaks out of the back of a business truck. No power means no refrigeration. I totally expected to get sick from his food so I passed.
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  • Reply 56 of 177
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by DroidFTW View Post





    After a 2 day power outage in a major metropolitan area I was approached by a man selling discount steaks out of the back of a business truck. No power means no refrigeration. I totally expected to get sick from his food so I passed.

     

    Like I said... anyone selling an $8 steak for $2... you know something is wrong. lol!

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  • Reply 57 of 177
    What you are saying is that a person should be able to pay $150 and get everything that comes with a $500 tablet.

    Nope! And I clearly stated they should get the appropriate HW for the device. What you keep ignoring is that these major retailers shouldn't be selling devices with malware!

    There is ZERO price envelope that should allow a vendor, intermediary, or retailer to install malware on any device.
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  • Reply 58 of 177
    OFFS.

    I'm not buying the $12 burger... I'm buying the fucking $1 burger... the same burger thast is offered at BK, Wendy's, A&W... you name it... but if some guy down the road wants to sell me the $12 burger for $4 or the $1 burger for 25¢ then I know that something is fucked up.

    I had a $12 burger last night, but your logic states that if it's 1/4 the price ($3) I'm willing to pay for a burger it's OK to get me sick. That's fucking insane! No food sold by a corporation should be allowed to get you sick and no CE sold by a corporation should be allowed to include malware.
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  • Reply 59 of 177
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post





    Nope! And I clearly stated they should get the appropriate HW for the device. What you keep ignoring is that these major retailers shouldn't be selling devices with malware!



    There is ZERO price envelope that should allow a vendor, intermediary, or retailer to install malware on any device.

     

    ... but that wan't the argument.

     

    My buying experience has always told me... you get what you pay for.

     

    If you want to be a rube then you are welcome.

     

    "MAN EATING CHICKEN INSIDE" Just $5 to view!

     

    Pays the $5... goes inside... sees some dude having a Kentucky Fried Chicken dinner.

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  • Reply 60 of 177
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SolipsismY View Post





    I had a $12 burger last night, but your logic states that if it's 1/4 the price ($3) I'm willing to pay for a burger it's OK to get me sick. That's fucking insane! No food sold by a corporation should be allowed to get you sick and no CE sold by a corporation should be allowed to include malware.

     

    No... you just aren't following the argument.

     

    If I see someone selling a $12 burger for $4 then I know that something isn't right. I won't eat that burger. YOU are welcome to it... but Caveat Emptor.

     

    You've been warned.

     

    Don't cry victim.

     

    {... and you have wandered off the original argument so far it's becoming a distant memory}

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