Fears and challenges of the future of smart homes
The ability to combine wearable devices, the Internet of things, the ability to collect all the information about your home and yourself in your own computer, build analytics and find the most effective patterns for solving everyday needs - from saving energy to predicting behavior and maintaining health, your family and friends. All these are brilliant prospects for the development of smart homes. Which, at the same time, may have weak points relating directly to the introduction of technology in everyday life.
To get started, we took a short article from the WallStreet Journal, which cites real life situations from owners of smart homes. The author of the article got a small list of possible problems that people face in real life:
They are the first in the list of problems with smart homes. Here, probably, we need to talk more broadly - about the choice of installers and components. As the proposed solution to the problem, it is also proposed to use the following rule: reduce the number of steps required to complete the operation.
For example, the article describes the situation when a “smart” mini-bar in a hotel turned on the light in the hotel when the husband went to the bathroom at night. As a result, I woke up my wife.
Now we have electricity, for example, 4.68 per kilowatt / hour (depending on the tariff, we take the Day tariff, single tariff, Moscow). Most people prefer to turn off the lights everywhere. It’s good if it makes a smart home for you. It’s bad if at the same time it eats up more energy than you save.
But, in fact, the list of problems does not end there. It can be expanded and considered. What other problems should be foreseen and, preferably, prevented when equipping a smart home?
1. Choosing the installer (executor)
Now the biggest danger is the poor choice of the installer. Because any automation system is completely his brainchild. If the installer does not understand well enough what he wants to receive (for example, he listens to the customer in everything and tries to fulfill all his wishes), it will turn out to be inconvenient and not right.
You can read about the domestic market of suppliers of smart homes in this article. It is especially noted here that:
“A feature of the domestic market of custom installations is its closed nature. It is difficult to get recommendations from customers who have already completed projects. Therefore, it is difficult to assess the level of proposed solutions and the feasibility of the project as a whole. ”
Therefore, perhaps this problem can be called central. At the moment, we lack both knowledgeable customers in the industry and transparency of service providers, which provides the best choice. At this stage of development, most often, the word of mouth has the greatest weight, to which it makes sense to listen. We, in turn, held a competition of integrators to contribute to solving the problem.
2. Insurance
Who is responsible for an insured event involving smart home equipment? Here it is necessary to make a reservation separately what an insured event is in the application to a smart home. Naturally, the result is that both the insured and the answer. It is possible that one of the most relevant insurance cases may be a banal theft of smart home equipment from objects. Directly from the shields and switches from the boxes.
3. Hacker attacks
Here, first of all, it is advisable to assess the risks of someone who needs you so much as to try to get into your secure network and get to control your home and life support systems. It is likely that even with those who wish, it is much easier and more efficient to “get” you in other, more primitive ways. Therefore, the possibility of a hacker attack on you is far from as likely as, for example, the theft of components, which we talked about above.
At this stage of the development of smart homes, all system security is carried out at the level of protection of the network itself. I went into the network - then everything is in your hands (if you know how everything works). Rarely is there password protection on IP interfaces. Wireless networks are encrypted, but this does not save them from hacking. While the problem is not very clearly visible, because automation is not widespread.
Here, of course, it is worth mentioning SSL. A secure connection is used everywhere. To access data in the cloud, use OAuth 2.0. So that the attacker doesn’t get into the local network, they make access to it through the list of poppy addresses and use encryption ... Here, too, it all depends on the directness of the hands of engineers and again it is worth remembering that there is no perfect protection. Any system can be broken if you really want to.
What might a hacker attack on a smart home look like? Now files on the computer are encrypted and require money for decryption, in the future they can try to turn off the heating and demand money for activation back. Therefore, Apple uses an authentication chip for Homekit, and iRidium has created a new protocol with data protection at the transmission level .
For those who like to ponder on hacking smart homes, we recommend the article “ All the ways hackers will try to kill you in the future ” (Sorry, English. Request a translation). Despite the name, it will rather reassure and entertain you, rather than frighten you.
4. The human factor
"... I want to install such a system for my family. Won't they ever be locked in an apartment with the phone turned off?" - probably someday will be. True, with exactly the same probability as now - without a smart home, and not necessarily through his fault. The human factor sometimes plays a key role. This also applies to the choice of the installer, and the reliability of your password storage, etc., etc.
5. Technical support
From the point of view of the business model, it is possible to install a smart home for the customer and to receive income from support in the future. In any case, support is needed, even if everything works fine, you can offer a “subscription” to the service, which is introduced periodically and ensures that in case of a breakdown they will come and fix everything.
From the point of view of the customer, it is important not only that everything is well installed and the installer does not “live” due to your expenses for repairs, but also that in the most favorable situation, when everything works well and breaks within reason, so that the support responds and arrives quickly and also quickly fixed problems.
Summarizing all of the above, there are probably no arguments strictly against the use of smart home technology. Moreover, correctly applied technology can significantly improve the comfort of living space and the quality of life. However, as with any technology, you need to minimize risks and take into account weaknesses. I hope this article has been helpful to you.
Well, lastly, a small task. Remember the minibar that turned on from the motion sensor even at night? How would you debug this inclusion, given that the goal is, of course, to increase sales of alcohol and supplies from the minibar? Remember that minimizing the steps of the algorithm gives a more efficient operation of the system as a whole. And welcome to the comments!
Imagine a world in which houses are smarter than their inhabitants
To get started, we took a short article from the WallStreet Journal, which cites real life situations from owners of smart homes. The author of the article got a small list of possible problems that people face in real life:
1. Frequent damage
They are the first in the list of problems with smart homes. Here, probably, we need to talk more broadly - about the choice of installers and components. As the proposed solution to the problem, it is also proposed to use the following rule: reduce the number of steps required to complete the operation.
2. Inconvenient setting
For example, the article describes the situation when a “smart” mini-bar in a hotel turned on the light in the hotel when the husband went to the bathroom at night. As a result, I woke up my wife.
“Too many cute solutions in search of problems.” - Too many elegant solutions to finding problems .
3. Energy Saving
Now we have electricity, for example, 4.68 per kilowatt / hour (depending on the tariff, we take the Day tariff, single tariff, Moscow). Most people prefer to turn off the lights everywhere. It’s good if it makes a smart home for you. It’s bad if at the same time it eats up more energy than you save.
4. Repair costs. Spare parts. Repair. Mending time
But, in fact, the list of problems does not end there. It can be expanded and considered. What other problems should be foreseen and, preferably, prevented when equipping a smart home?
1. Choosing the installer (executor)
Now the biggest danger is the poor choice of the installer. Because any automation system is completely his brainchild. If the installer does not understand well enough what he wants to receive (for example, he listens to the customer in everything and tries to fulfill all his wishes), it will turn out to be inconvenient and not right.
You can read about the domestic market of suppliers of smart homes in this article. It is especially noted here that:
“A feature of the domestic market of custom installations is its closed nature. It is difficult to get recommendations from customers who have already completed projects. Therefore, it is difficult to assess the level of proposed solutions and the feasibility of the project as a whole. ”
Therefore, perhaps this problem can be called central. At the moment, we lack both knowledgeable customers in the industry and transparency of service providers, which provides the best choice. At this stage of development, most often, the word of mouth has the greatest weight, to which it makes sense to listen. We, in turn, held a competition of integrators to contribute to solving the problem.
2. Insurance
Who is responsible for an insured event involving smart home equipment? Here it is necessary to make a reservation separately what an insured event is in the application to a smart home. Naturally, the result is that both the insured and the answer. It is possible that one of the most relevant insurance cases may be a banal theft of smart home equipment from objects. Directly from the shields and switches from the boxes.
Alleged problems of smart homes in the future
2035. Going back to my home. Smart home is gaining me a bathroom. Turns on the music. I enjoy going to the bath. And the water is cold because they turned off the hot water in connection with maintenance work.
3. Hacker attacks
Here, first of all, it is advisable to assess the risks of someone who needs you so much as to try to get into your secure network and get to control your home and life support systems. It is likely that even with those who wish, it is much easier and more efficient to “get” you in other, more primitive ways. Therefore, the possibility of a hacker attack on you is far from as likely as, for example, the theft of components, which we talked about above.
At this stage of the development of smart homes, all system security is carried out at the level of protection of the network itself. I went into the network - then everything is in your hands (if you know how everything works). Rarely is there password protection on IP interfaces. Wireless networks are encrypted, but this does not save them from hacking. While the problem is not very clearly visible, because automation is not widespread.
Here, of course, it is worth mentioning SSL. A secure connection is used everywhere. To access data in the cloud, use OAuth 2.0. So that the attacker doesn’t get into the local network, they make access to it through the list of poppy addresses and use encryption ... Here, too, it all depends on the directness of the hands of engineers and again it is worth remembering that there is no perfect protection. Any system can be broken if you really want to.
What might a hacker attack on a smart home look like? Now files on the computer are encrypted and require money for decryption, in the future they can try to turn off the heating and demand money for activation back. Therefore, Apple uses an authentication chip for Homekit, and iRidium has created a new protocol with data protection at the transmission level .
For those who like to ponder on hacking smart homes, we recommend the article “ All the ways hackers will try to kill you in the future ” (Sorry, English. Request a translation). Despite the name, it will rather reassure and entertain you, rather than frighten you.
4. The human factor
"... I want to install such a system for my family. Won't they ever be locked in an apartment with the phone turned off?" - probably someday will be. True, with exactly the same probability as now - without a smart home, and not necessarily through his fault. The human factor sometimes plays a key role. This also applies to the choice of the installer, and the reliability of your password storage, etc., etc.
Mr. Wastewedt, you are doing it wrong:
Mrs. Wastewedt, a 45-year-old interior designer, installed the system herself, and Mr. Wastewedt, a 45-year-old accountant, quickly figured out how to use it for her own purposes: now, if he calls the children to dinner, and they don’t go for a long time, he remotely disconnects the X-Box and TV. A source
5. Technical support
From the point of view of the business model, it is possible to install a smart home for the customer and to receive income from support in the future. In any case, support is needed, even if everything works fine, you can offer a “subscription” to the service, which is introduced periodically and ensures that in case of a breakdown they will come and fix everything.
From the point of view of the customer, it is important not only that everything is well installed and the installer does not “live” due to your expenses for repairs, but also that in the most favorable situation, when everything works well and breaks within reason, so that the support responds and arrives quickly and also quickly fixed problems.
There is no progress without side effects
Summarizing all of the above, there are probably no arguments strictly against the use of smart home technology. Moreover, correctly applied technology can significantly improve the comfort of living space and the quality of life. However, as with any technology, you need to minimize risks and take into account weaknesses. I hope this article has been helpful to you.
Well, lastly, a small task. Remember the minibar that turned on from the motion sensor even at night? How would you debug this inclusion, given that the goal is, of course, to increase sales of alcohol and supplies from the minibar? Remember that minimizing the steps of the algorithm gives a more efficient operation of the system as a whole. And welcome to the comments!
Imagine a world in which houses are smarter than their inhabitants