Why American Farmers Are Hacking Their Tractors With Ukrainian Firmware

sounds like an opportunity to offer an alternate system

https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/why-american-farmers-are-hacking-their-tractors-with-ukrainian-firmware
Why American Farmers Are Hacking Their Tractors With Ukrainian Firmware

A dive into the thriving black market of John Deere tractor hacking.

To avoid the draconian locks that John Deere puts on the tractors they buy, farmers throughout America's heartland have started hacking their equipment with firmware that's cracked in Eastern Europe and traded on invite-only, paid online forums.

Tractor hacking is growing increasingly popular because John Deere and other manufacturers have made it impossible to perform "unauthorized" repair on farm equipment, which farmers see as an attack on their sovereignty and quite possibly an existential threat to their livelihood if their tractor breaks at an inopportune time.

Very old, I know, but it was suggested under another post.


This is actually why a ton of small homesteaders in my area purposefully buy OLD tractors. Repairing them is easy and possible. My husband does quite a bit of maintenance on our 2008 Kubota but if there was ever a computer issue we'd be forced to take it in.

It's said in our area that's why farmers are so broke. The tractors cost SO MUCH and then even more to keep in repair. I can't imagine buying a 300k tractor to farm winter wheat. No thanks!

This is interesting but my thoughts are if the ukranians can remotely shut down the wehicle? This software could maybe be implemented in other wehicles and if it comes to that,hackers can shut down wehicles.I would prefere if it is only John Deere that can remotely shut down my tractor as it is described in the article.

And I can only guess but Europa is overwhelmed with criminal bands which steal agricultuar equipment and of course John Deere is a popular tractor to steal and if John Deere can remotely shut down a stolen tractor it will be fine.I understand where the needs to develop an pirate firmvare comes from.I would not buy it for two or three reasons.

Rolf Olsson wrote:This is interesting but my thoughts are if the ukranians can remotely shut down the wehicle? This software could maybe be implemented in other wehicles and if it comes to that,hackers can shut down wehicles.I would prefere if it is only John Deere that can remotely shut down my tractor as it is described in the article.

That’s not how it works. If there is a security gap for one, anyone can find it.

What John Deere did was High Treason against this country, and it is a darn shame that while the Supreme Court did semi-rule in the farmers favor, they could have gone, much, much further and allowed third party repair shops to be able to service John Deere tractors.

John Deere has played incredibly dirty even after the ruling, and I think the blacksmith John Deere would be rolling over in his grave if he knew how his good name is now forever tarnished.

I am glad American Farmers have found a black market solution to John Deere's antics, and hope that legislatures will get their act together and bring a Congressional Investigation to the practices of John Deere to make them an example, and hold them accountable for their decisions.

Nice reminder of why it's so important to support Right To Repair legislation, not just for electronics but for everything. Planned obsolescence and consumer-level "licensing" that masquerades as a purchase are both predatory business practices that need to go away.