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Might be a good idea to avoid cheap IOT devices — Parallax Forums

Might be a good idea to avoid cheap IOT devices

Comments

  • rosco_pcrosco_pc Posts: 464
    Nothing to do with cheap. Just be carefull with iot devices, period.
  • TorTor Posts: 2,010
    'Select OK to allow <...> to use your data' with no options to disallow. And no way to read without it.
    Please can we stop posting links to such sites?
  • localrogerlocalroger Posts: 3,451
    Pretty much what I found when I dissected the EcoPlug smart outlets that were discontinued and deep-discounted by Home Depot last year. Another issue is that these things are completely (and invisibly) dependent on a remote server operated by the vendor, which will know every time you turn the device on or off, and without which (should the vendor ever shut the server down) the device will become a brick. Fortunately the EcoPlugs ESP8266 can be reprogrammed. I would be reluctant to use any of these devices as they are supplied from the vendor.
  • rosco_pcrosco_pc Posts: 464
    Tor wrote: »
    'Select OK to allow <...> to use your data' with no options to disallow. And no way to read without it.
    Please can we stop posting links to such sites?

    Unfortunately this is a result of the EU's GDPR rules and this most likely only shows up when having an ip address in europe. Some sites even refuse access now
  • ceptimusceptimus Posts: 135
    Iris Support | Iris by Lowes

    Don't buy closed source internet-of-things devices unless you're prepared for them to be rendered obsolete at any time. This is not the first time this sort of thing has happened.
  • Beau SchwabeBeau Schwabe Posts: 6,566
    The main thing I think you need to watch out for are counterfeits. I worked on an IOT project using a couple thousand HM-11's and we ran into a supplier that had some counterfeits which did not work in our application. We did eventually find a reliable source and avoided a major headache. .... IOW - you get what you pay for
  • TorTor Posts: 2,010
    edited 2019-02-01 12:53
    rosco_pc wrote: »
    Unfortunately this is a result of the EU's GDPR rules and this most likely only shows up when having an ip address in europe. Some sites even refuse access now
    Actually no, it isn't. The GDPR rules don't say that companies can force-use your data just to get access to a page. They say the opposite in fact. What *I'm* saying is that companies that insist on stealing your personal data (at any level) should not have their links posted here. Let them rot, instead.
  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,185
    Ah.
    That's the article behind the musings of Hack A Day. Both those strange people, and the cyber security firm behind the business there, came to a rather disturbing conclusion regarding these LED lights who can be controlled from such things as the Google Home device.

    My only concern is that the site still looks crappy on Chrome on this new laptop.
    --
    And this message is being sponsored by the survivors of the Blank Plague.
  • AwesomeCronkAwesomeCronk Posts: 1,055
    Would not a router which records and time timestamps all accessed and data transmissions within your network, providing a report after a specified duration(daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) allow you to possibly catch these items?
  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,185
    It would. But most routers, read commercial devices, such as the one supplying an IP address to this new laptop, and even to your computers do not do that.

    It would have to be running a build of Open WRT which was specifically built to enable that feature. In fact I vaguely recall seeing it in my first one which did not do WiFi, the ones who do perform WiFi do not include it.

    Besides the biggest problem here is that most people who find those things do not have the technology to read the information found inside them. Open one, sure, read the information out, no.
    ----
    And this message is being sponsored by Perry Mason Attorney at Law.
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