The actual Internet of things is Tesla collecting 130 million miles of autopilot data to make autopilot safer. It's GE collecting data from the jet engines they produce to understand failures and do predictive maintenance. It's Netapp collecting error logs from fileservers in the field, so they know how to prioritize their bug database, which performance bottlenecks to fix, and what limitations actual customers encounter.
That's the real internet of things. Just ignore all the (hype for) idiotic connected home crap covered by the popular press. Yes vendors are producing these products but the only feature I want is a a global disable for any such thing I accidentally bring into my home.
> Just ignore all the idiotic connected home crap covered by the popular press.
Funny, that's what a black hat would say who compromises tens of thousands of homes because of a shitty consumer device. And a global disable, how's that going to work?
The "IoT" is a major crapshoot, because any idiot can hook up their garbage to the internet and (inadvertently) enable RCE (remote code execution) on it compromising the home network of the user even if it doesn't state that risk on the tin (as if you could prove that with current methods).
The world hasn't seen an incident big enough to care, but I bet one is coming (look for cutesy names like Heartbleed and Stagefright in the headlines) and it will be the usual game of hindsight that leads politicians to go public about it as it has been the case with any major invention (cigarettes, alcohol, cars) that found its way into the public's hands.
The golden age of black hats is before us still. I wish I could say I wouldn't be affected...
Unfortunately, none of those things promise what the IoT promises - insight and control into your own stuff. They're ways for companies to monitor what you're doing, in real-time, after they've sold a product to you. Windows 10 is as much a part of the IoT as any of those.
I think the name itself is broken. Most applications just need to be a local network of things.
Having a million device thats that are difficult to audit, configure and sensitive to internet and service outages is a nightmare recipe.
Not sure how to solve this in an easy to fix way but it makes me miss the days of RFCs and standards. Seems like we need something higher level than z-wave, zigbee and 802.11.
Every Wifi router needs to treat every device on the network as independently untrusted, except where explicitly told to do otherwise. Outbound connections aren't as big a problem as every random device having full access to a home network.
Here's one area where I think some government regulation is going to be called for. If nothing else, it should be mandated that one can "disconnect" and still have the device function to consumers expectations. That should apply to everything from watches to cars.
The way this ought to work is that you have a home server that talks to all your home devices, and can also be reached from the outside world with suitable security. A "cloud" service is unnecessary. Unfortunately, we're not going to get that, unless some carrier such as AT&T or Comcast pushes it.
To some degree both Apple and Google seem to be pushing towards that. In iOS 10 your phone/tablet talks directly to home devices, and if you have an Apple TV it allows secure tunneling (e.g., talking to your devices via the always-on Apple TV). Ditto Google is working on similar things, though the precise plans are a bit more uncertain.
An "actual" home server in the form of a computer in a closet is IMO incredibly unlikely. Piggy-backing this functionality into an existing always-on device seems much more likely for mass adoption.
The big issue is that IoT manufacturers will be fighting this tooth and nail. Nobody wants to be a commodity IoT manufacturer, and so all of them will try to push their own (shitty) cloud platforms as value-adds and avoid commoditization.
Similar to how Android OEMs keep crufting up a perfectly fine OS in a futile bid to prevent commoditization. It won't work, but they will try.
Back in the kitchen he fished in his various pockets for a dime,
and, with it, started up the coffeepot. Sniffing the-to him-very
unusual smell, he again consulted his watch, saw that fifteen
minutes had passed; he therefore vigorously strode to the apt
door, turned the knob and pulled on the release bolt.
The door refused to open. It said, "Five cents, please."
He searched his pockets. No more coins; nothing. "I'll pay you
tomorrow," he told the door. Again he tried the knob. Again it
remained locked tight. "What I pay you," he informed it, "is in
the nature of a gratuity; I don't have to pay you."
"I think otherwise," the door said. "Look in the purchase contract
you signed when you bought this conapt."
In his desk drawer he found the contract; since signing it he had
found it necessary to refer to the document many times. Sure
enough; payment to his door for opening and shutting constituted a
mandatory fee. Not a tip.
"You discover I'm right," the door said. It sounded smug.
From the drawer beside the sink Joe Chip got a stainless steel
knife; with it he began systematically to unscrew the bolt
assembly of his apt's money-gulping door.
"I'll sue you," the door said as the first screw fell out.
Internet of things needs a point. It's more about features for features sakes than anything else. Sure, a manufacture can add wifi for ~1$, but then what.
>Sure, a manufacture can add wifi for ~1$, but then what.
Analytics, surveillance and lock-in. Require the user to apply for an online account and charge them a monthly fee to do something online that used to be free, monitor their usage and make it difficult for them to use another brand's products without significant friction.
Just because there's a ton of shit doesn't mean there aren't things that are improved with connectivity.
Wi-Fi video doorbells are pretty great (or at least have the potential to be great). The Nest thermostat is good. Security cameras are obviously better if you can access them remotely.
I have WiFi scales that are awesome (I've wanted some for yeeears but they've only just become affordable).
I wish I had connected blinds and curtains, and smart lights would be good if integrated with the wall switches (damn renting).
I can't tell if I am about to accuse you of failure of vision, but if I end up doing so, it isn't intended in an mean-spirited way.
I'm an engineer. I build things. If somebody needs a motor or a control system or a marijuana distiller or a laser printer postscript engine kanji-to-scanalizer, that's what I get hired to do.
Recently, I was hired by a residential-to-light-commercial construction engineering company. They get plots and plats and architectural designs and collect their own soil samples and have to generate slabs and framing plans. Pretty mundane, but a lot of their process is done by hand, and they wanted to automate it.
During the process, it becomes apparent that a big component is soil - on the foundation. 30 year insurance plans on how much the foundation gets distorted by ... well, in some areas, ... rainfall.
It turned out (this is a few years ago now, so now we have data) that moister causes expansion and contraction. That causes the foundation to flex and fail. It also turns out that, one can measure the flexing with sensors, report back to the data-munging mother ship, and tell the sprinker system to water more or water less and ... save foundation cracks.
Now, yes, I know that this is nothing more than adding WiFi for ~1$, as you say. But it's a pretty big business value that works all up and down the value chain for how 30 year costs and risks and layoffs get allocated for entire subdivisions. I guess I'm not disagreeing with you - I guess I'm saying that, I agree, but, that's still a lot of value.
As a casual gamer, I run into this quite a bit. Want to play online? Need a gigabyte update. Want to use Skype. . gotta merge your accounts. Makes me miss the days of the SNES and n64.
It was never intended to be internet of things literally.
There's now way to scale to that level where all tiny devices are connected.
It was ment to be the local network of things exactly like someone else pointed out here.
The things will be connected on the local nerwork behind the home router.
The IoT is a buzz word that was catchy and market pushed it farther cause it sells well.
For as long as these things and what surrounds them are secure (as secure and safe as my router is) and they respect my privacy policies I will vote up them big time and they will grow farther be sure of that at the same rate and speed as the other tech wave is/was.
consumer routers are usually anything but secure in the iot sense. This because while they block unsolicited inbound traffic, they will allow any outbound traffic. And if you have upnp enabled on it, and most come with it on by default, all bets are off.
Damn it, Samsung managed to produce and sell a voice controlled TV that sends everything the microphones pick up back to the mothership unencrypted.
IoT is a corporate pipe dream. Just about the only thing that could use a internet connection is my fridge, and then only after every damn thing in it has a NFC tag to go with their bar code.
Meaning that it could keep a constant watch on its content etc, and allow me to check what is there (and not starting to develop its own lifeforms) when i am out shopping groceries.
For all the rest i need to be physically present to load and unload them with something anyways, so unless they come laden with enough sensors that i can bring up a full diagnostics on a whim (and actually do more than order a whole new machine, thank you very much) I'll pass on IoT.
I honestly do not understand the IoT hate. Yes, there is a lot of insecure devices: mostly the not-cloud ones which needs an open port. But IMHO they provide a lot of value, especially if you are a developer. At least it does for me.
[+] [-] paulsutter|9 years ago|reply
That's the real internet of things. Just ignore all the (hype for) idiotic connected home crap covered by the popular press. Yes vendors are producing these products but the only feature I want is a a global disable for any such thing I accidentally bring into my home.
[+] [-] RGamma|9 years ago|reply
Funny, that's what a black hat would say who compromises tens of thousands of homes because of a shitty consumer device. And a global disable, how's that going to work?
The "IoT" is a major crapshoot, because any idiot can hook up their garbage to the internet and (inadvertently) enable RCE (remote code execution) on it compromising the home network of the user even if it doesn't state that risk on the tin (as if you could prove that with current methods).
The world hasn't seen an incident big enough to care, but I bet one is coming (look for cutesy names like Heartbleed and Stagefright in the headlines) and it will be the usual game of hindsight that leads politicians to go public about it as it has been the case with any major invention (cigarettes, alcohol, cars) that found its way into the public's hands.
The golden age of black hats is before us still. I wish I could say I wouldn't be affected...
[+] [-] vertex-four|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] enraged_camel|9 years ago|reply
a) are actually secure
b) do not send any data to the vendor or any third-party services
[+] [-] robohamburger|9 years ago|reply
Having a million device thats that are difficult to audit, configure and sensitive to internet and service outages is a nightmare recipe.
Not sure how to solve this in an easy to fix way but it makes me miss the days of RFCs and standards. Seems like we need something higher level than z-wave, zigbee and 802.11.
[+] [-] CaptSpify|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] macspoofing|9 years ago|reply
Seems like an opportunity.
[+] [-] Puts|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] patcheudor|9 years ago|reply
"The drive, ability, and sheer will to change a WiFi password is inversely proportional to the number of devices one manages on a WiFi network."
http://thefutureisastephenkingnovel.com/assets/player/Keynot...
[+] [-] JoshTriplett|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Er-c|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] intrasight|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] swiley|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Animats|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] potatolicious|9 years ago|reply
An "actual" home server in the form of a computer in a closet is IMO incredibly unlikely. Piggy-backing this functionality into an existing always-on device seems much more likely for mass adoption.
The big issue is that IoT manufacturers will be fighting this tooth and nail. Nobody wants to be a commodity IoT manufacturer, and so all of them will try to push their own (shitty) cloud platforms as value-adds and avoid commoditization.
Similar to how Android OEMs keep crufting up a perfectly fine OS in a futile bid to prevent commoditization. It won't work, but they will try.
[+] [-] JaymesKeller|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kps|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] endgame|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Retric|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] krapp|9 years ago|reply
Analytics, surveillance and lock-in. Require the user to apply for an online account and charge them a monthly fee to do something online that used to be free, monitor their usage and make it difficult for them to use another brand's products without significant friction.
[+] [-] petra|9 years ago|reply
Why ? the $1 bullshit app industry, for example, is thriving.
[+] [-] IshKebab|9 years ago|reply
Wi-Fi video doorbells are pretty great (or at least have the potential to be great). The Nest thermostat is good. Security cameras are obviously better if you can access them remotely.
I have WiFi scales that are awesome (I've wanted some for yeeears but they've only just become affordable).
I wish I had connected blinds and curtains, and smart lights would be good if integrated with the wall switches (damn renting).
[+] [-] ci5er|9 years ago|reply
I can't tell if I am about to accuse you of failure of vision, but if I end up doing so, it isn't intended in an mean-spirited way.
I'm an engineer. I build things. If somebody needs a motor or a control system or a marijuana distiller or a laser printer postscript engine kanji-to-scanalizer, that's what I get hired to do.
Recently, I was hired by a residential-to-light-commercial construction engineering company. They get plots and plats and architectural designs and collect their own soil samples and have to generate slabs and framing plans. Pretty mundane, but a lot of their process is done by hand, and they wanted to automate it.
During the process, it becomes apparent that a big component is soil - on the foundation. 30 year insurance plans on how much the foundation gets distorted by ... well, in some areas, ... rainfall.
It turned out (this is a few years ago now, so now we have data) that moister causes expansion and contraction. That causes the foundation to flex and fail. It also turns out that, one can measure the flexing with sensors, report back to the data-munging mother ship, and tell the sprinker system to water more or water less and ... save foundation cracks.
Now, yes, I know that this is nothing more than adding WiFi for ~1$, as you say. But it's a pretty big business value that works all up and down the value chain for how 30 year costs and risks and layoffs get allocated for entire subdivisions. I guess I'm not disagreeing with you - I guess I'm saying that, I agree, but, that's still a lot of value.
[+] [-] B1FF_PSUVM|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] turnip1979|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ourmandave|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unusximmortalis|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] digi_owl|9 years ago|reply
Damn it, Samsung managed to produce and sell a voice controlled TV that sends everything the microphones pick up back to the mothership unencrypted.
[+] [-] digi_owl|9 years ago|reply
Meaning that it could keep a constant watch on its content etc, and allow me to check what is there (and not starting to develop its own lifeforms) when i am out shopping groceries.
For all the rest i need to be physically present to load and unload them with something anyways, so unless they come laden with enough sensors that i can bring up a full diagnostics on a whim (and actually do more than order a whole new machine, thank you very much) I'll pass on IoT.
[+] [-] fcanela|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Pica_soO|9 years ago|reply
[+] [-] teslaberry|9 years ago|reply
[deleted]