alt Hacker News> Why? Why should Linux ever implement local laws like this as core functionality? Especially invasive/anti-privacy ones.
1) It's legally required to sell computers with that OS in certain jurisdictions
2) I presume there is at least one person actually selling said
3) The feature is so trivially easy to bypass that it presents no reasonable privacy threat at this time (IIRC, it's just a numeric field with no validation?)
Lets up the ante.
After seeing how easily California bent OS developers (commerical and open source) to comply with their local laws, Canada decides they will go one further. They aren't happy with a simple date field that can be easily fudged. So they pass a law that requires all OS's to continually scan the biometrics of users using the OS. ie. Camera if it has one, fingerprint reader once an hour, voice analysis, etc.
They also refuse to allow computers to be sold in their country unless OS developers comply with their law.
Do you think you'll see such enthusiam to comply? Or will the line be drawn at some point?