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You do know that you can prevent IOT devices from reaching the internet, right? Our Wemo gear, cameras, etc, get blocked by my firewall. Problem solved while st

You do know that you can prevent IOT devices from reaching the internet, right? Our Wemo gear, cameras, etc, get blocked by my firewall. Problem solved while still benefiting from their convenience.

milankragujevic 6y ago
I hope you do know that most consumers don't even have their own router, let alone anything that can isolate devices or block certain traffic.
extrememacaroni 6y ago
What an amazing solution, so simple and accessible to the average consumer. What's the next revelation, that you can prevent the IOT devices from reaching the internet by reverse engineering and rewriting their software?
- greyw 6y ago
  An even easier and more accesible solution to move your boot with a high enough acceleration towards the IoT device thereby totally disabling the internet functionality! Doesn't even need any technical skill.
  - JKCalhoun 6y ago
    I know you're being humorous but.... If only there were a big sign on every such device saying "We are spying on you!". Otherwise how is the average consumer to know which ones to apply boot to? (Also, the boot needs mass and velocity, acceleration is orthogonal :-))
laurent92 6y ago
This is where Sigfox has a lot of added value: It is like a simcard, but you only pay per million packages instead of per SIM, and you save the trouble of customers trying to disable your hardware. If you build electronic components and the TV integrator doesn’t want to bother providing ethernet to the power unit, at least the power unit can self-report its location to the grid.
- TamHagmas 6y ago
  Interesting point. I have also been thinking about how LPWANs could, in theory, be used to exfiltrate data from consumer devices without anyone noticing. I mean, it would be trivial to hide a tiny Sigfox / LoRa transmitter in kitchen appliances, washing machines, televisions, cars or whatever and claim that you need information like location and how the devices are used for "market research". It feels like it should be illegal, but I'm not sure if it is or if there are loopholes. Do you, by chance, know of any actual consumer products with covert Sigfox / LoRa transmitters?
  - laurent92 6y ago
    No I don’t, I’ve just be loosely afraid of TVs with sim cards, and since I discovered Sigfox I know that will happen someday. Same as the MH370 (I think) which went dark at transponder level but the engines continued to return the technical data for 4hrs.
  - ville 6y ago
    Amazon has built a LoRa transmitter (Amazon Sidewalk) in their Echo and Ring devices since 2017, it seems. They’re not hiding it though. It’s marketed as something you might want to keep enabled and “help your neighbors” by sharing its location. - “if your Echo device loses its wifi connection, Sidewalk can simplify reconnecting to your router” - “customer support can still troubleshoot problems even if your devices lose their wifi connection” - you “support community extended coverage benefits such as locating pets”

You do know that you can prevent IOT devices from reaching the internet, right? Our Wemo gear, cameras, etc, get blocked by my firewall. Problem solved while still benefiting from their convenience.

milankragujevic 6y ago

I hope you do know that most consumers don't even have their own router, let alone anything that can isolate devices or block certain traffic.

extrememacaroni 6y ago

What an amazing solution, so simple and accessible to the average consumer. What's the next revelation, that you can prevent the IOT devices from reaching the internet by reverse engineering and rewriting their software?

greyw 6y ago
An even easier and more accesible solution to move your boot with a high enough acceleration towards the IoT device thereby totally disabling the internet functionality! Doesn't even need any technical skill.
- JKCalhoun 6y ago
  I know you're being humorous but.... If only there were a big sign on every such device saying "We are spying on you!". Otherwise how is the average consumer to know which ones to apply boot to? (Also, the boot needs mass and velocity, acceleration is orthogonal :-))

laurent92 6y ago

This is where Sigfox has a lot of added value: It is like a simcard, but you only pay per million packages instead of per SIM, and you save the trouble of customers trying to disable your hardware. If you build electronic components and the TV integrator doesn’t want to bother providing ethernet to the power unit, at least the power unit can self-report its location to the grid.

TamHagmas 6y ago
Interesting point. I have also been thinking about how LPWANs could, in theory, be used to exfiltrate data from consumer devices without anyone noticing. I mean, it would be trivial to hide a tiny Sigfox / LoRa transmitter in kitchen appliances, washing machines, televisions, cars or whatever and claim that you need information like location and how the devices are used for "market research". It feels like it should be illegal, but I'm not sure if it is or if there are loopholes. Do you, by chance, know of any actual consumer products with covert Sigfox / LoRa transmitters?
- laurent92 6y ago
  No I don’t, I’ve just be loosely afraid of TVs with sim cards, and since I discovered Sigfox I know that will happen someday. Same as the MH370 (I think) which went dark at transponder level but the engines continued to return the technical data for 4hrs.
- ville 6y ago
  Amazon has built a LoRa transmitter (Amazon Sidewalk) in their Echo and Ring devices since 2017, it seems. They’re not hiding it though. It’s marketed as something you might want to keep enabled and “help your neighbors” by sharing its location. - “if your Echo device loses its wifi connection, Sidewalk can simplify reconnecting to your router” - “customer support can still troubleshoot problems even if your devices lose their wifi connection” - you “support community extended coverage benefits such as locating pets”