I canceled ADT service about 15 years ago. For the next few years they were mailing open-air ads to my address asking me to reconnect the alarm system.
I managed to reach someone in their C-suite, who told me directly that they were unconcerned about that type of privacy data being made available to anyone who happened to read a literal postcard.
“Look everyone knows you no longer have an alarm, or alarm service”
It was hell, and in the end they made us sign a bunch of shit via docusign (!), and even then you're forced to pay for 30 days more service while they bombard you with scaremails.
Never again.
Fingers crossed...
I'm using nest secure now, anyone have any suggestions for a replacement?
At least they aren't killing my smoke alarms, though, they still can't automatically dispatch fire/police if there is smoke/fire, though they will dispatch if an alarm is triggered.
And I'm one of the guilty ones. Well, the apartment I live at is. Its range hood is one of those things that even after putting in brand new filters and extensive cleaning barely performs better as one of those fake ones at Ikea.
Same with the bathroom fan. When you turn it on it's loud, but it just circulates air. So I open the door. But that sets of the smoke alarm in the hallway...
My favorite vendor is https://suretyhome.com/ - they have reasonable costs to get an alarm panel running with monitoring and all the normal integrations.
(I personally use an older Honeywell Vista security system that's been integrated into ADC via a communicator. The sky's the limit!)
Any other alarm.com gear is generally fair game as long as it's been released from any account it's on from any monitoring company.
As much as I don’t think it’s that great, Ring seems to be the best of the bunch now.
That is why you do not see as much activity in Security or Fire Alarms as you to other Home Automation, and most likely why Google went with ADT instead of rolling their own with Nest... Someone in legal look at that and said "Yea lets let ADT lawyers deal with that"
I don’t think it’s as big a legal minefield as you suggest. You just need the right integrations in place, and as you said, figure out the regulations (often at a county level). But it’d a solvable problem.
My guess is that this business is very sticky so it’s hard to get new people started… plus you’re making a lot of SKUs in hardware that you need to keep in inventory, software up to date, once you buy the hardware you don’t upgrade it, it’s not very sexy, etc.
That minefield is a 3 legged stool
1. Actual Legal Liability
2. Perceived Legal Liability
3. PR Liability around the law / legal system
#1 is probably not very big, however if you put a smoke alarm in someones home that does not work correctly or perceived to not work correctly and your a name like Google that the media loves to report on... well #2 and #3 become HUGE.
law suits will be filled, and even if you "win" in actual court, the court of public opinion will not be favorable
Note many alarm companies can still link to it one way or another; in fact I use the nest products with Ring via something that listens for its chirps.
You can also sell alarm service without fire, and vice versa. Or use a third party product whitelabeled, as many do with First smoke alarms.
If you look at their Nest Secure offering, it was always half baked. They didn’t have enough accessories to make a compelling line up. Rather than legal liability, it seems far more likely to be another half-in-half-out product that Google is infamous for rolling out and then killing a few years later.
Either Buy DSC Wired Gear yourself[1] and install it (hard) or do a "less secure" wireless system using HomeAssistance and Zigbee or Zwave devices.
[1]https://www.level1techs.com/video/better-iot-dsc-alarms-whom...
It basically sits on the keypad bus of the system and emulates a normal keypad, so you can integrate it into whatever applications you want like HomeKit, or as my colleagues did, a fully homespun bespoke home automation suite in .NET.
Telcos, and cable companies will often private label existing solutions that are made for enterprise (B2E) and not really meant for B2C as well, let alone B2B (small business)
You would be better off finding something like Home Assistant and stumbling through connecting something together.
I've been using ADT for 26 years, and in my current home for 23. I have had no issues with them, and have found them responsive when alarms happen or equipment needed to be replaced.
OTOH, some pals have a Simplisafe setup and it's been a darkly hilarious saga of nonfunctional sensors, false alarms, and ongoing chicanery.
Does anyone willingly want to go ADT? Home of the three year contract, the long-winded-drawn-out cancellation processes, the constant door-knocking and chasing down to sign up for service, the constant glut of fees and charges when things go wrong...