
Apple’s T2 Security Chip Has Created a Nightmare for MacBook Refurbishers - emptybits
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/akw558/apples-t2-security-chip-has-created-a-nightmare-for-macbook-refurbishers
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zelienople
Apple has become monstrous. This is an egregious waste of the planet's
resources. I am an Apple developer and huge Mac/IOS fan, and I have grown to
hate the company with a burning passion. I will not buy one thing from Apple.

They lie outrageously when the claim to be "green". Their security for both
IOS and Mac are solely profit-motivated. They could easily allow someone with
an iCloud or T2 locked device to generate a message to the Apple ID of the
user, who could then agree to unlocking if the device had been donated, sold,
or recycled, but they refuse.

They could easily implement a simple tracing program online or through the
Apple store that allowed people to file a case for unlocking if the device
were not listed as stolen, but no, they would rather contribute to the
destruction of the planet by padding the bottom line.

I am called on to recommend hardware for a lot of people and companies, and my
advice now is "Don't buy Apple". It will take a few years, but eventually they
will decline because of techs like me giving this advice.

The first thing I do when I am considering any new product is to look at the
repairability score. Apple is not doing well. You would have to be a complete
dolt to buy AirPods.

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j-pb
Also for admins. I had to send back an iMac Pro because we installed it from a
backup. This skipped the T2 setup during install, and left it in a completely
broken/uninitialized state that only apple could fix (presumably by throwing
the entire mac away).

Our company has a strict "NO T2" policy, and after we can't get T2 less macs
anymore, we're gonna switch to windows after 30 years of being a mac shop.

~~~
Crosseye_Jack
I know its no help to you now as you have already sent it back but if the T2
on the iMac Pro was simply uninitialized or corrupted you can put it in to DFU
mode and use another mac and Apple Configurator 2 to restore the T2's
firmware.
[https://help.apple.com/configurator/mac/2.7.1/#/apdebea5be51](https://help.apple.com/configurator/mac/2.7.1/#/apdebea5be51)

~~~
j-pb
I had a lengthy talk with apple support about this. They've advised against
that, since the specific version of the T2 that specific iMac Pro shipped
with, had a failure case where resetting the firmware would also brick it. At
least that's what I've been told, could be that apple rather pays the shipping
costs, than the support hours if something goes wrong ofc.

~~~
Crosseye_Jack
But you already had a brick so not a lot to lose esp if you are expecting
Apple just tossing the mainboard when it’s returned anyway ;-)

It’s a known issue that a MacOS restore can upset the T2.

But yeah, if you can live without the iMac while Apple do their thing there is
a valid argument to say “why waste a tech’s time researching and attempting a
fix when Apple will cover the cost of sorting it.”

~~~
j-pb
Yeah, it's on their clock if they have to fix it. Also as a company you have a
much narrower margin of time to return, than as a private person. And we
didn't want to be stuck with a mac that kinda sorta works, but might break at
any time.

We solved the problem by returning the iMac Pro entirely, and instead getting
a prev-gen iMac with maxed out specs.

Got us into a similar capability range, no pesky T2, and saved like 3k.

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tonyedgecombe
It sounds like the recyclers need to co-ordinate with their customers better.
If they can't send it in unlocked then refuse the item. It can't be that hard
to administer.

Personally I'm glad these devices are useless if they are stolen.

~~~
j-pb
There's no way you're gonna get these devices unlocked if they're from a
company that has gone under, I guarantee there will be either no time to reset
the devices properly, or the people who could have done this have been let go
long before everything went bust completely.

If there's thousands of these devices then it's a design flaw not a user
fault.

Theft protection is orthogonal to recycling. If apple wanted they could easily
setup a system that allows users to mark macs as stolen, which locks them
down, and notifies the police/owner whenever they are powered on. But which
would still allow "certified recyclers" to unlock and wipe macs that haven't
been marked, so that they can be gifted to people in poverty, schools,
students, and other non-profit causes.

I bet such a system would even increase return rate, as recycling companies
have no interested in keeping a stolen macbook if they are able to unlock all
the disposed ones instead.

Apple can market this however they want, the T2 has one main goal, reduce
reuse and increase turnover and sales.

It's exactly the same as with the Sonos Bricking, except that Sonos has come
to their senses and disabled it, while Apple has the diehard support of their
fan base, no matter how hard they screw people over.

~~~
tonyedgecombe
_There 's no way you're gonna get these devices unlocked if they're from a
company that has gone under,_

You can always find an edge case but in general we are better off if these
devices can't be stolen.

~~~
crankylinuxuser
This is so negative sum thought. It's not even zero sum.

"If I cant have it NOBODY CAN! <stomps foot>"

As much as theft hurts, destroying a device that costs so much environmental
resources just to be vindictive to a thief over is abhorrent.

They could do this without the destroying hardware by linking serial numbers
to people, making it trivial to look up who owns a serial number, and then
enforcing receive stolen property a crime.

~~~
tonyedgecombe
It's not to be vindictive to a thief, it's to deter a thief. There is no point
in steeling something that has no value.

 _They could do this without the destroying hardware by linking serial numbers
to people, making it trivial to look up who owns a serial number, and then
enforcing receive stolen property a crime._

Who is they? Apple? The state? The number of ways that could go wrong is
endless.

~~~
crankylinuxuser
>> They could do this without the destroying hardware by linking serial
numbers to people, making it trivial to look up who owns a serial number, and
then enforcing receive stolen property a crime.

> Who is they? Apple? The state? The number of ways that could go wrong is
> endless.

Well, Apple, insurance and the state all have their part.

The government can _enforce_ the crime of receiving stolen property. However
on the other side, is whenever higher dollar merchandise is sold, to also
record the owner. We already do this with vehicles and the VIN. Manufacturers
already do this for warranty and recalls.

And Apple usually also knows who you are from the AppleID, which almost always
has payment and addresses on file.

And, __everything __has endless ways it can go wrong. But there 's a pretty
well known finite ways of it going, with weird legal edge cases. Apple,
Insurance, and the state can handle at least the more common cases.

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rkwasny
This is a feature not a bug, no one will want to steal a mac if it's not worth
anything.

However there should a way (possibly in iCloud) to remove protection from old
laptop that you gave to someone.

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pcdoodle
What a waist of resources. "Apple is committed to the environment" is such BS.
Apple is basically "taking green cars off the road to build new ones and
polluting the environment in the process".

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piracy1
Isn't that the point?

