Re:I'm never investing in Google's smart home ecosystem again
by 9991 on Sunday May 07, 2023 @12:26PM
(#35853066)
Perhaps it's too radical, but if this is the main concern, you could still build appliances with Linux that just aren't networked. Take a page out of Battlestar Galactica's playbook.
Re:I'm never investing in Google's smart home ecosystem again
by thayne on Sunday May 07, 2023 @01:20PM
(#35853549)
Or at least, only connect to the local network.
Re:I'm never investing in Google's smart home ecosystem again
by 9991 on Monday May 08, 2023 @05:27AM
(#35859692)
That’s an option for a consumer who knows what a VLAN is, but mass-market appliances need to have some barrier to network access.
Re:I'm never investing in Google's smart home ecosystem again
by oceanplexian on Sunday May 07, 2023 @02:54PM
(#35854424)
My smart home stuff is all Z-Wave and my oldest devices are going on 10 years now. A light switch doesn’t need to be maintained or updated. I guess a hacker could drive up to my house with a laptop and a SDR, reverse engineer the protocol and then, I guess, turn my lights on and off? That’s a security tradeoff I’m willing to accept.
Ex: You have a thermostat or an alarm system that runs Debian, Debian gets a vulnerability, you try to upgrade it, but you need to change Debian versions, and your old stack isn’t supported on the newer version. Nowadays you need to keep patching all your old appliances, keep the old domain names and exact URLs, and need to actively look for vulnerabilities. All of that can only be provided by a subscription, not the initial purchase cost: