Not in my Home!!!

[Pat Barry]

Pat,

We don't allow access to anyone's email address here. As far as real names and locations that information is publicly available from a number of resources. Additionally if you consider the number of databases that have been hacked from very large companies and government institutions over the last few years its likely that much more sensitive information is available publicly these days than any one of us is comfortable knowing exists.

That is what I'm getting at. All sorts of big companies and .com sites have been hacked and personal data has been stolen. Everyone who participates here is somewhat vulnerable. Possibly, having a portal through a site such as this, provides hackers somewhat easier access for them to unlock other information in other locations, ie passwords shared between sites by users. Face it, everyone here has multiple sites they utilize and the key to getting entry to those sites are passwords. It is just common sense that exploiting a site such as SMC might be easier than Twitter or Facebook or your bank or the SSA. Obviously folks should have different passwords for other sites, particularly ones with importance, but I bet there are many here that don't do that. I'd like to hear from experts here about ways everyone can safeguard their privacy and not spout about their fears - we all have those concerns. Having concern, by itself, is unproductive.

[Keith Outten]

Bill,

My daughter was inside the house so I called her first because I didn't know if I was going to pass out or not. She was inside my shop in less then 30 seconds with her phone in her hand dialing 911.

Pat,
Securing a server has a lot to do with the services you provide. Some options that are enabled can increase your risk dramatically. Certain configurations make servers highly secure and much more difficult to invade. I don't have the expertise to go into any details, this is what my expert tells me. I have unique and extremely difficult passwords for every account I use online, this was a lesson I learned during my ten years as an Internet Provider. Any good network administrator will insist on a specific means of selecting passwords, I have always taken their advice.

[Simon MacGowen]

Funny that some of you are worried about what is in your home. What is more worrisome is what is vulnerable in the institutions which we rely on: governments, banks, utilities, healthcare etc.

The hacking tools including those stolen from NSA will get into one or more of those systems one day and it is just a matter of time that someone makes a break through in the evil way, or someone in those institutions makes a mistake that allows others to wreck our lives. You really think encryption can save us all? I am not so optimistic, but I probably won't live long enough to find out how IT may turn out to be more lethal than nuclear weapons.

Simon

[Al Launier]

I find it a bit ludicrous that people can have this perspective yet willingly participate in a forum such as this with real names, email addresses, living locations, and commentary all for public dissemination, yet pretend some sort of line in the sand being drawn with "smart" devices. I hope you don't pay your bills online, or attempt to access your banks or the SSA accounts for that matter.

I thought these sarcastic responses were prohibited on this forum. Regardless, isn't that what software security is for, both through personal purchase and that offered by forums, to inhibit or remove virus intrusions, etc?

[Jim Koepke]

The hacking tools including those stolen from NSA will get into one or more of those systems one day and it is just a matter of time that someone makes a break through in the evil way, or someone in those institutions makes a mistake that allows others to wreck our lives.

According to reliable sources this already happened through the vulnerabilities in social media.

Some will believe anything they see on TV or the internet.

jtk

[Carlos Alvarez]

I previously posted about my wifi thermostats saving me a bunch of cash when an air conditioner was failing. Well my friend who said "who the heck needs to control their thermostat from the couch" just spent almost a grand for a major repair that probably could have been avoided if he had caught it like I did. It cost me $107 because the thermostat let me know there was a problem.

[Mark Blatter]

Funny that some of you are worried about what is in your home. What is more worrisome is what is vulnerable in the institutions which we rely on: governments, banks, utilities, healthcare etc.

The hacking tools including those stolen from NSA will get into one or more of those systems one day and it is just a matter of time that someone makes a break through in the evil way, or someone in those institutions makes a mistake that allows others to wreck our lives. You really think encryption can save us all? I am not so optimistic, but I probably won't live long enough to find out how IT may turn out to be more lethal than nuclear weapons.

Simon

Your comment is a concern I have, no doubt. As we see more of our institutions and companies that help drive the economy get hit, I wonder how long til a major crash happens. When something like the Equifax hack happens, it shows that incompetence and greed (for not being willing to spend the money to upgrade systems) are far more likely to bring the system down than evil doers. I just read this abouit the Echo;

A couple’s private conversation was mysteriously recorded by their Amazon Echo device and sent to one of their contacts, igniting privacy concerns about the voice-activated gadgets the online retailer wants to make as commonplace in homes as televisions.

So yeah, I don't personally see a benefit, today, to having an Echo in my home. Tomorrow perhaps, but even less so after a simple glich like this one. In 15 years perhaps it will allow me to stay in my home longer, but we are all gonna die some day anyway.

Going back to Simon's comment, I always think of one of my favorite movies. It is just a movie, but oddly prescient some 26 years later. Ben Kingsly's character, Cosmo, was a little scary.

Cosmo: Posit: People think a bank might be financially shaky.
Martin Bishop: Consequence: People start to withdraw their money.
Cosmo: Result: Pretty soon it is financially shaky.
Martin Bishop: Conclusion: You can make banks fail.
Cosmo: Bzzt. I've already done that. Maybe you've heard about a few? Think bigger.
Martin Bishop: Stock market?
Cosmo: Yes.
Martin Bishop: Currency market?
Cosmo: Yes.
Martin Bishop: Commodities market?
Cosmo: Yes.
Martin Bishop: Small countries?
Cosmo: I might even be able to crash the whole damn system. Destroy all records of ownership. Think of it, Marty: no more rich people, no more poor people, everybody's the same. Isn't that what we said we always wanted?
Martin Bishop: Cos, you haven't gone crazy on me, have you?

[Jim Koepke]

A couple’s private conversation was mysteriously recorded by their Amazon Echo device and sent to one of their contacts, igniting privacy concerns about the voice-activated gadgets the online retailer wants to make as commonplace in homes as televisions.

From the news:

An Amazon Echo user in Portland, Oregon, says she was shocked to learn her Echo had recorded a conversation with her husband without them knowing, then sent the audio file to one of his employees in Seattle.

http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/24/tech...ing/index.html

The device is always on and always listening. With memory of what was said yesterday or the day before it could be real scary.

jtk

[Pat Barry]

"
The device is always on and always listening. With memory of what was said yesterday or the day before it could be real scary.

jtk"
Yes, it is always on and listening for its keyword. That is local listening, no external communications the way Amazon describes it. It doesn't wake up until it recognizes its name and light's up. There is no memory until it wakes up, again, according to Amazon. If someones has other real information, or something I stated is false, please correct / clarify/ expound.

[Bill Dufour]

"
The device is always on and always listening. With memory of what was said yesterday or the day before it could be real scary.

jtk"
Yes, it is always on and listening for its keyword. That is local listening, no external communications the way Amazon describes it. It doesn't wake up until it recognizes its name and light's up. There is no memory until it wakes up, again, according to Amazon. If someones has other real information, or something I stated is false, please correct / clarify/ expound.

beleive what the article is saying is it thought it heard it's name and then soem commands to record and then send the recording to Some address it already had in it's memory. Kind of like the autofill option.
Bil lD
I

[Jim Koepke]

A friend has echoed my feeling on this and told me about a murder case that involved recordings on Amazon's servers from a suspect's homes on their "helper" devices:

THE AMAZON ECHO can seem like your best friend—until it betrays you. That's because this device is different from anything else in your house. Alexa, the voice assistant that powers Echo and more, is always listening, sending what you say after using a "wake" word to Amazon's servers. Of course, Echo isn't the only voice-assistant speaker on the market, but it sits in millions of homes, and Alexa is headed to devices from companies like Ford, Dish, Samsung, and Whirlpool.
Thankfully, before Alexa can betray you, Amazon is taking steps to push back.
Arkansas police [ http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/28/tech/a...der-case-trnd/ ]recently demandedthat Amazon turn over information collected from a murder suspect's Echo.

https://www.wired.com/2017/02/murder...otion-privacy/ ]https://www.wired.com/2017/02/murder-case-tests-alexas-devotion-privacy/

This case ended up being dropped for lack of evidence.

Search terms > alexa recording in murder case < or > alexa recording in court <

It seems the 'smart' water heater also came into play because of an inordenate amount of water being used late at night.

Another article mentioned a suspect whose alibi was broken by his Fitbit not agreeing with his story of where he was.

Kind of reminds me of an old Twilight Zone episode where the home appliances went against the homeowner.

jtk

[Carlos Alvarez]

A friend just told me she was given an Echo. Had to send it back. Her name is Alexis, and the thing triggered constantly. She didn't ask me or research the fact that you can change the word.

[Chris Parks]

And for all the bad stuff technology brings to our lives we have technology possibly saving one

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/...25-p4zhen.html

[Carlos Alvarez]

And for all the bad stuff technology brings to our lives we have technology possibly saving one

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/...25-p4zhen.html

Similar things have happened a number of times. Also the Apple Watch has saved a lot of lives by alerting people to unusual heart rate/rhythms that it detects. Just a few weeks ago I read about a guy having a mild heart attack but he didn't feel bad enough to go to the ER. Then the watch told him to.

[Carlos Alvarez]

I had a few neighborhood kids over building model rockets on Sunday, along with my friend who is a teacher. We were in the wood shop, when one of the kids fell and hit his head. Two other kids said he slipped and fell, but that didn't make much sense. The two adults were not looking at the time. Dad took him home to clean him up, and couldn't decide whether a hospital visit was needed or not. Since I have motion-activated cameras in both garages I decided to go see if it was captured. It showed the kid looking wobbly (dizzy), walking a few feet, then stopping. Then his head tilted up and he just fell over. He fainted, didn't slip. That told dad he needed to go to the ER.

When they got there, he showed the video and it had two great benefits. One, they took him in immediately since they could see that he passed out and hit hard. Second, the "did you abuse your child" conversation was very short. Otherwise without evidence they have to assume you may have done it, and involve an investigation.

Another win for home automation and security.

He's doing well and the docs aren't sure what happened. Dad said they had a sleepover and were up way too late. The kid said he felt dehydrated, and dad had just started to walk over to get a bottle of water for him when he fell, which is why he didn't see anything. Hey may have a mild concussion but was over yesterday to play with our dogs and said he felt great.

Side funny: Another kid, while installing a fin, just nonchalantly said, "I hope these fly better than the North Koreans' rockets!"