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Old 09-21-2018, 10:38 AM   #16
tubemonkey
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The way to a true smart house is becoming clearer. Hopefully it won't get too smart, like SARAH.
...or The Veldt
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Old 09-21-2018, 11:56 AM   #17
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If you must spread FUD, at least try to back it up with some relevant facts. Link to a report of a successful "via alexa" or "via google home" hack if you can find any evidence of one.
Before you posted, did you even try a Google search on such terms as Alexa and hacking? Yes, most of the hacks are difficult but once these proof of concept hacks are done, it's likely just a matter of time before the script kiddies in your neighbourhood will be able to implement them.
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Old 09-21-2018, 11:57 AM   #18
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About the microwave:

https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/20/1...os-dash-button

No, it won't play Audiobooks.
But it serves more than one purpose:

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Is all this worth $59.99? Sure, it’s a pretty dead-ahead 700W microwave after all. It’s black and boxy and simple. I don’t have a lot more to tell you about the hardware. It has a rotating tray on the inside. There are vents and a metal enclosure. It ships on November 14th.

The point isn’t to wow you, though. The point is for Amazon to wow gadget makers with how simple, secure, and easy it is to integrate its Alexa Connection Kit. That little module includes Amazon’s new Real Time OS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and so on. The idea is that it’s a more plug-and-play solution for making more things talk to Alexa. It’s a smart move for Amazon, and it’s increasing its lead as the de-facto hub of gadgets in your house.
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Old 09-21-2018, 01:10 PM   #19
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Er...well there are these things called firewalls. All my PCs have them. so does my router
I hope you have reviewed the default rules in your firewalls and changed them. Many (probably "all", but I can't confirm that) consumer level firewall software has a default rule that allows unrestricted communication between devices on your same subnet.

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and what's there to get at anyway? nothing can write to my devices over LAN , without credentials, and there is nothing of interest to read in any shared folders.
Nobody was talking about your personal situation. The post was general, meant for many different people in different situations with different levels of knowledge and sophistication regarding computer security.

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If you must spread FUD, at least try to back it up with some relevant facts. Link to a report of a successful "via alexa" or "via google home" hack if you can find any evidence of one.
Demanding a report like this before you are willing to consider security measures makes me think you don't know nearly as much about security as you think you do.

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Meanwhile - feel free to unplug yours. Mine stays on. ask it to say "Honey I'm home" if you can hack it
If this is all you think is possible if an IOT device gets hacked, I pray for you. FWIW, I have four Alexa devices in my home - on a separate network from my computers, of course.

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PS maybe if you tried really really hard you could maliciously burn the popcorn ?
Actually, that would be one of the easier things to do. You wouldn't have to try very hard at all. What you should be more concerned about is what is being done while you are distracted by your burning popcorn.

There are three (high) levels of computer/network/security expertise - those that really know it, those that have no experience with it, and those that think they know it. I have seen a couple reply posts that might have come from the "really know it" group. And some from the "think they know it" group. None from the "no experience with it" group thus far, but that's expected since they don't (yet) have the experience/knowledge to be able to understand what has been said. The "think they know it" group is further subdivided into "want to improve" (positive outlook) and "know-it-all's" (negative outlook). The "really know it's" can help the "want to improve's" and the "no experience", but it's often a lost cause on helping the "know-it-all's". But that's OK, since they are not the target audience. The "want to improve" group can also offer good advice to others if they have climbed the experience/knowledge ladder high enough. It is difficult to differentiate the high level "want to improve's" from the "really know it's", but such differentiation is largely meaningless because both groups are usually willing to offer advice and help others.

My post was submitted in good faith, to raise awareness of the security issues created by the Internet of Things. Triggered by Amazon's recent announcement about greatly expanding the IOT. It is not FUD. Many people are simply not aware of some of the security implications, much less how to address and mitigate them. However, ignore the post or ridicule it as you see fit. That doesn't bother me.
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Old 09-21-2018, 05:56 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by stumped View Post
it maybe comes down to "what have you got to hide"
if you don't keep your banking passwords in clear text in notepad on your desktop what's the hackers target ?
You appear quite naive.

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and why bother to hack via all these new things connected to the router, when they could just hack the router instead?
Don't worry, they're attempting to do that as well. I do hope you are updating your routers firmware regularly, and your router manufacturer is conscientious enough to provide you with timely firmware updates. I could put together another post on router security, but I don't think you'd be terribly interested in that either. FYI, most routers have reasonably decent protection for WAN-to-LAN attacks. Not impenetrable, but fairly good (if you keep them patched appropriately). However, once the hackers are on your LAN, as they would be after piggy-backing in on a compromised IOT device, the vast majority of people have no protection for their LAN-connected computers. Some have moved from "no protection" to "very little protection" by installing firewalls on each computer connected to the LAN. Much better than nothing that's for sure, but this requires you to maintain multiple firewalls on multiple computers unless you're a one-computer household. And you have to know the proper ways to set up a firewall. Defaults and click-boxes like you find on typical consumer grade software firewalls are not usually solid protection. But as you can well imagine, software retailers don't want to require their customers to have advanced engineering degrees. Unfortunately, setting up a secure system pretty much does require an advanced engineering degree.

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everyday seems to bring another well publicised loophole and how-to for doing that
This is quite true. Since you recognize this, it makes me wonder why you appear so nonchalant about security.

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if its those embarrassing nude selfies well you could just stop taking them
Actually, nude selfies are one of my first lines of defense against hacking. I put one of those up on my gateway, and the hackers go running and screaming the other way.
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Old 09-22-2018, 03:07 AM   #21
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And a wall clock. And a stereo. And DVR.

They are all-in on Alexa and home automation.
The most interesting one to me is the Echo Auto. I wonder if it can do better at controlling in car audio than Android Auto.
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Old 09-22-2018, 10:04 AM   #22
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I have 2 echo dots and 1 google home.

I am ready for some more
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Old 09-22-2018, 10:51 AM   #23
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I really wanted to get an Alexa device, but last time I checked, it couldn't do what I wanted.

I would like to say "hey Alexa, good morning", and have it do the following:

1) tell me the weather
2) turn on the TV
3) issue a command to a Fire TV

I can do all those things individually using Alexa voice commands, but the macro functionality couldn't string them all together. Has this changed?
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Old 09-22-2018, 11:51 AM   #24
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The review I read thought it was unnecessary. I disagree. My father had macular degeneration. He couldn't read things like microwave keys, elevator keys, his clock, the CD player and CD labels. I wish he had had Alexa while he was alive. Being able to chose and play music verbally, ask the time and date, and do simple things like use the microwave verbally would have been wonderful.
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Old 09-22-2018, 12:39 PM   #25
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I have 2 echo dots and 1 google home.

I am ready for some more
Then Jeff has something special just for you:

$250 -- Echo Sub Bundle with 2 Echo (2nd Gen) Devices -- $80 savings

Why get this combo you ask? Because the Echo 2s are synced and will play music in stereo. Such a deal, no?

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Bundle and save with Echo

Enjoy rich left/right stereo sound when you pair Echo Sub with two Echo (2nd Gen) devices or two Echo Plus (2nd Gen) devices for a wireless 2.1 stereo system.
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Add Deep Bass to your Echo

With Echo Sub and a compatible Echo device, you can add rich bass to your music experience. Echo Sub delivers down-firing, 100W deep bass sound through a 6” woofer. When paired with your Echo device, you can feel the music as it fills the room — just say “Alexa, play music.”

Last edited by tubemonkey; 09-22-2018 at 12:41 PM.
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Old 09-22-2018, 02:00 PM   #26
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Originally Posted by John F View Post
I really wanted to get an Alexa device, but last time I checked, it couldn't do what I wanted.

I would like to say "hey Alexa, good morning", and have it do the following:

1) tell me the weather
2) turn on the TV
3) issue a command to a Fire TV

I can do all those things individually using Alexa voice commands, but the macro functionality couldn't string them all together. Has this changed?
I believe so.
Have you looked into Alexa templates?

https://www.engadget.com/2018/04/19/...ll-blueprints/
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Old 09-22-2018, 02:14 PM   #27
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Originally Posted by crossi View Post
The review I read thought it was unnecessary. I disagree. My father had macular degeneration. He couldn't read things like microwave keys, elevator keys, his clock, the CD player and CD labels. I wish he had had Alexa while he was alive. Being able to chose and play music verbally, ask the time and date, and do simple things like use the microwave verbally would have been wonderful.
Also, there are the recipes: most microwaves come with settings for common functions or recipes. With the AmazonBasics microwave, you just tell it what to do.
"Defrost 3 pound chicken. "
"Cook three frozen corn dogs. "
"Cook Stouffers Lasagna, 8 ounce size."
You can bet most microwaveable food vendors will add skills for their products.

The key here is that Alexa doesn't just power up the oven but it also controls the power setting and timer. Complex recipes that require multiple power settings and waiting periods become one-command functions. More, the skills can do the math for the user so recipe skills will automatically scale with the amount of food.

They're going with a small, entry level oven, leaving room for partners to build more complex models with, say temperature probes.

As the review above said, the AmazonBasics oven is just a demonstrator.
More gadgets will follow.

Somewhere along the way we'll get Rosie or HandyAndy or both.
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Old 09-22-2018, 03:00 PM   #28
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I believe so.
Have you looked into Alexa templates?

https://www.engadget.com/2018/04/19/...ll-blueprints/
From what I can tell, Skills don't look like they would work. Routines looked pretty close, but I don't think they would work either.

Thanks for the suggestions.
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Old 09-22-2018, 03:05 PM   #29
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The day I fear, and I think it may already be here, is when someone can come up to your house and scream into the window, "Alexa, unlock the front door." And, ... she will !
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Old 09-22-2018, 03:23 PM   #30
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It will be very quiet and peaceful here for a looong time yet. All those smart thingies will probably never understand my native language in my lifetime, if ever (less than 1 million speakers, so who will bother.). Oh well. Fewer things to worry about.
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