Another questionable ideal - Internet of Things

[ohland]

As I was pandering to Belle, Fox Business ran a spot on emerging movers and shakers in tech. One of the people interviewed mentioned the "Internet of Things" where just about everything in your house that is electronic is accessible and controllable via the net.

Remember "Elf on a Shelf" and "Nanny Cams"?

Now it MAY be that the manufacturer provides adequate security at the start, but what happens five years down the road when your SUX6000 freezer/fridge/hibachi/still is hacked? Better yet, for us living in arctic like climes with thermostats, what if some joker turns it OFF while the temps are in the minus side? Burst pipes?

At present, I know of NO shared interface for devices, so EACH maker will have to update or maintain the security provisions for their product. Imagine all the stuff being built in Red China being supported until it goes to the great landfill in the sky.

And now back to our regularly scheduled broadcast...

[Expat74]

I wait for the day the fridge and me have discussion whether the beer-to-food ratio is out of proportion (again).

D-oh!

[montana_charlie]

I will certainly refrain from owning anything that is 'voice controlled'.
If it is connected to the phone line, or to the internet via wireless ... while it's 'listening to me' it may be passing anything being said on to 'others' who are not controlled by my voice.

CM

[JSnover]

Not long ago it was discovered that e-cigs were being loaded with malware which would infect the users computer when they used the USB port to recharge.

[popper]

Many years ago TI chose a CEO that claimed he would put a TI processor into 'everything. I sold my TI stock.

[shooter93]

Around here at least "smart house" technology isn't hardly ever requested. And you can still buy basic appliances that don't have the capability but that could change. I have no desire to be able to control my house when I'm not here so I'll be opting out till the bitter end.

[Garyshome]

Yep a computer controlled house will be almost as good as a computer controlled car!

[MaryB]

Seeing as I try to save energy to the extreme because I run off solar/battery as much as possible I do not want or need all the extra energy drain of that garbage.

[Expat74]

Seeing as I try to save energy to the extreme because I run off solar/battery as much as possible I do not want or need all the extra energy drain of that garbage.
Good point.. sometimes "smarter" is just marketing.

[archmaker]

This is the problem with implanted medical devices.

I attend the hackers convention every year and almost without fail some manufacture is providing 'enhanced' technology with their devices,and there is a hacker showing how to exploit it. This Includes wireless technology for pacemakers. This has been hacked, and was probably the primary reason that Dick Cheney requested that the wireless be disabled on his pacemaker.

It is not that the technology is bad, it is that the in the effort to provide 'more' with the devices that security takes a back seat. Do you really think the people that design dishwashers know how to protect their devices from being exploited, I don't have much confidence.

[leadman]

Saw a segment on 60 minutes where a car had various things disabled, like the brakes! There is no direct connection between your throttle, shifter, and brakes on most new cars now. My truck and my wife's suv don't even shift for us as they are both manual transmissions.

[SharpsShooter]

Ya, all these new whizbang gadgets will come around and bite you on the behind I suspect.

We have cars that will park themselves, stop themselves, warn you if you're intruding into another lane as well as many many other things.

There's a commercial out now where in they send a car racing down a track and it stops itself several the short of impacting the wall. Every time I see it I have to chuckle and wonder how many cars they trashed before they got it just right. And the car is empty.

They wanted to impress me they'd have to put the CEO in the front seat with his hands and feet restrained. Then send that car down the track.



SS

[Springfield]

I don't even have a garage door opener. I unlock it myself and pull the handle. Easier for me is also easier for everyone else, I like things difficult when it comes to security.

[Shooternz]

All that computer controlled junk is for lazy people if it fails you could be in deep doggie do, all my electric devices are switched of at the wall if not in use, I only just transitioned to a digital camera film still rules as does vinyl music, my car is manual I have a dumb fridge/freezer and my cell phone only gets used for voice calls and texts I don't trust it with anything else it tried to lose me with the GPS.

[dakotashooter2]

Because of the drives for technology and green energy it will not be long before the electrical demand exceeds the supply (solar and wind can't come close to supplying enough) A power failure already shuts down things fast wait until EVERYTHING requires power.............. I don't think most people realize that cell phones require towers or satellites to function. Cut the power to either and they are worthless.

[garym1a2]

I like the ideal of remote control items. A thermostat I could program to run the AC cooler just before I get home, a water heater that turns on 20 minutes before I need it. Remote cameras to keep an eye on my stuff and the dogs. A camera in the frige so I can see if I need food before driving home,...

[ohland]

Remote cameras to keep an eye on my stuff and the dogs. A camera in the frige so I can see if I need food before driving home,...

Wow, I bet someone could see if anyone is home. Bet that having a fridge cam would allow the government to see what you eat, and adjust your health care costs, or access, as it sees fit.

You WERE joking, right?

[perotter]

I will certainly refrain from owning anything that is 'voice controlled'.
If it is connected to the phone line, or to the internet via wireless ... while it's 'listening to me' it may be passing anything being said on to 'others' who are not controlled by my voice.

CM

http://disinfo.com/2015/02/warning-samsung-smart-tvs-listening/

"In a remarkably Orwellian admission, Samsung warns owners of its so-called Smart TVs not to talk in front of the TVs, because they are listening to what you say. From BBC News:

Samsung is warning customers to avoid discussing personal information in front of their smart television set.
The warning applies to TV viewers who control their Samsung Smart TV using its voice activation feature.

Such TV sets ‘listen’ to every conversation held in front of them and may share any details they hear with Samsung or third parties, it said."

It might even keep a log of what was said and be available to be sent when it is connected.

[perotter]

I like the ideal of remote control items. A thermostat I could program to run the AC cooler just before I get home, a water heater that turns on 20 minutes before I need it. Remote cameras to keep an eye on my stuff and the dogs. A camera in the frige so I can see if I need food before driving home,...

They'll be programmable for that without a camera. It could then be programmed to send an order to the store with the option of them delivering or calling you to pick them up on the way home.

The latest version of Google's application builder has added appliances to it.

[ohland]

be programmed to send an order to the store with the option of them delivering or calling you to pick them up on the way home.

Great! Now someone can monitor your installation to see if there is a pattern....