Xiaomi cited that security risks and malicious threats that can potentially harm its devices with malware have led to a new decision to lock the bootloaders.
The affected devices include the Redmi Note 3, the Mi Note Pro and the Mi 4c for now. Other devices will eventually be added to the list, according to Xiaomi.
"We've locked the bootloader for Redmi Note 3 since its launching in order to protect user data safety," said Xiaomi in a forum thread. "As we said before, we'll be making the same change for other Mi devices gradually. Now, the list will include Mi 4c and Mi Note Pro also."
Malware issues have been among the biggest concerns against devices that are made by Chinese manufacturers. Xiaomi said that locking the bootloaders of its devices will somehow prevent unofficial resellers from installing malware. Furthermore, the company explained that devices with an unlocked bootloader are susceptible to security loss.
"Many users have taken the risk of buying from [an] unofficial reseller," said Xiaomi. "But they sometimes get fake Mi phones, or Mi phones with unofficial ROM loaded with bloatware."
The company noted that the situation is also seen in the China market.
Apart from locking the bootloader, the company made other notable changes that include the "Find Device" function of the Mi Cloud and the verifying logic that is executed by the adjusted system update.
Xiaomi also provided a way for users to unlock the bootloader, as it has stated in the forum. In order to start with the process, users would have to follow certain steps which the company has assured to be really simple. These include downloading a zip file and then run it on the Updater app found in MIUI; entering one's log in details to a Mi account with a device that has unlock permissions; entering once again the log in details to the same Mi account on desktop following a prompt from the Unlocking Tool and connecting the affected device in bootloader mode to the desktop.
Unlocking the bootloader may take between three to 21 days, as all requests to unlock it are approved manually by developers. Users who wanted to unlock the bootloader of their devices would have to find their way in navigating around the unlock request website where they will be asked to fill in some details, including the reason why they need to unlock the bootloader. If the request is granted, they can expect to receive Unlock codes from Xiaomi.
"The unlocking procedure will need Internet access to get the unlocking password," said Xiaomi. "Also, the Mi Account logged in on the Mi phone and the unlocking tool needs to be the same. Otherwise the unlocking request will be denied. This will ensure that ill-mentioned people will not get access to your personal data."
