Although it’s more trivial to steal something as pocketable as a smartphone, there are times when gangland or angry mobs attempt to escape with even bigger products. Last month, South African towns and cities saw unrest become riots, which frequently leads to mobs looting unprotected stores. That, of course, transforms into losses for affected retailers, so Samsung is implementing a replacement Television Block functionality to discourage the theft and resale of stolen TVs by effectively bricking them.
Rallies and protests, even justified and well-meaning ones, always run the danger of getting more violent elements in their midst. A peaceful can turn ugly at the slightest provocation, and mobs can become thieves when the chance arises. to guard retailers and indirectly protect consumers, Samsung pushes its TV Block technology to pack up all functionality of stolen TVs.
It works almost like how stolen phones are often locked or maybe wiped, but the method doesn’t start from the phone owner. Instead, when a Samsung TV connects to the web, its serial number is shipped to the company’s server and is checked if it had been marked as stolen. If so, the blocking system kicks into action, and every functionality is disabled, making it useless.
Legitimate buyers whose TVs get blocked by mistake can appeal their case by sending proof of purchase and a legitimate TV license. Unfortunately, those buying from unauthorized resellers or the grey market won’t have those details available, which doesn’t protect them from crafty thieves who attempt to get nonfunctional products off their hands for a fast buck. It also won’t stop those thieves from taking the TV apart and use or sell the components separately.
Samsung believes that it’s still enough to limit the motivation for looting and mitigate creating markets selling illegal goods. The TV Block technology is already pre-installed on all Samsung TVs and won’t be limited to South African markets.
