Smart Homes
Smart homes are becoming a bigger thing over time and I don’t really like them a whole lot. A lot of people that end up buying and setting these up don’t think a whole lot about the negative consequences.
Security
A lot of these devices like smart cameras, lights, thermostats, etc. have to be connected to your network and have internet access. Many of the companies that produce these products don’t care too much about security which can put your whole network in danger and the data that the smart home devices collect could be inspected by an attacker.
These smart home devices usually don’t receive updates for very long, connected all the time, handle personal data and if an attacker can find a flaw in one specific smart home device, they can use the same flaw for the same device elsewhere.
A lot of them are usually made as cheap as possible to compete but in doing this, the software and hardware can be reliable but very outdated meaning even if they wanted to, they may not be able to implement various security updates.
The device may have a hard coded password that can’t be changed which can mean compromising the device is fairly easy.
Does It Really Need To Be Smart?
Some things don’t really look like they need to be smart. Usually something being smart is a small convenience like not having to get up to turn the light off. Some things are just pointless like a smart fridge that can show you what is inside the fridge when you could just open and see what is there.
Conclusion
It isn’t entirely about smart homes being a bad idea but instead that the smart home device market is filled with a lot of crap that people shouldn’t be buying either because it is unsafe or useless. A lot of the data they handle is sensitive or can put devices on your network at risk so do your research before purchasing any. A man’s home is his castle so inspect to see if it is a gift or a trojan horse.