The real reason behind Samsung's One UI 8 bootloader unlock ban is an EU law
The software modding community wasn't too happy when it emerged last week that Samsung has banned bootloader unlock with One UI 8.
Samsung has generally been tolerant of these mods so this move was unexpected for the community. The company didn't explain why this was done but it appears that an EU law effectively forced Samsung to take this step.
Unlocking the bootloder allows for custom ROMs and kernels on the device. This also makes it possible to update devices that no longer receive software support to newer versions through third-party ROMs.
Samsung's decision to ban bootloader unlock on One UI 8 didn't impact users in the United States, because they've not had the ability to do this for some time now. Users everywhere else can no longer tinker with the software on their device like they could before.
A report points out that this likely due to the European Union law 2014/53/EU which imposes new cybersecurity requirements on device manufacturers like Samsung. They must ensure that the devices they sell in Europe block the installation of unauthorized software and only run signed and approved ROMs.
