PSA: Ugghh! "Echo Update: Amazon Sidewalk is coming soon"

Truly in-house inventory and a purchased unlock code. You will pay anything after that last roll of TP.

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And drone delivery!! Don’t forget drone delivery!

Nothing says cool like the delivery disclaimer including circular error probable:

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Reminder: The complete disregard and lack of respect for people’s privacy, on-line security, and right to control their own property continues:

Anyhoo…if the article is accurate/correct, folks have until about Jun 8 to opt-out or whatever. From the article, here’s how to turn it off:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=GZ4VSNFMBDHLRJUK

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Not that Google is any better, but I’m glad I ditched my Ring doorbell for a Nest Hello. No Alexa in our house, either. Suck it, wifi leeches.

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had not realized Ring was part of the 'Zoniverse… .apparently I wasn’t paying attention in 2018 and after…
My Ring1 appears to be too old to participate anyway, but I’m sure it’ll find a way…they always find a way…
On the other hand, if lookyloos can get the damned thing to work “right now right now”, they probably deserve to use it right now.

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Odd when they first started making noise about this I thought I went in and turned it off. I just checked, and it was enabled. I disabled it again. Cant wait for them to get where all devices will work with Apple, Amazon, or Google so I can ditch Alexa for Homepod Minis.

What a great thread! You people are hilarious! :wink:

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One time SWIM had this roommate and without elaborating too much they had BAGS OF MYSTERY in the living room and were in the middle of an exchange.

When the providers left I scolded my roommate for having an Alexa in the room during that exchange. Roommate said it wasn’t turned on. So I said, HEY ALEXA, PLAY DESPACITO. My point was communicated very clearly.

Roommate didn’t even use the Alexa, like it would just be there for decoration. Just a little narc sitting on a table. :roll_eyes: some people.

Just wait until the pervs start using your IP for downloading illegal stuff…

I haven’t read the EULA and legalese for this blatant use of someone else’s paid internet service, but have to wonder what Amazon will do when someone is accused of it because their IP address shows up on the fed radar. Probably nothing.

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Allegedly you won’t be able to log in and just use it for Internet service. There’s a daily “morning” paper in Dallas, I found this on their web site. Not providing a link because paywall:

Sidewalk is a hidden network, meaning you won’t be able to walk over to your neighbor’s house and log into the Sidewalk network and start using their Wi-Fi. The data transmissions of Sidewalk are limited to low-bandwidth connections. The devices that can use Sidewalk will automatically do so if they find a network connection.

Let’s say you and your neighbors on either side all have Echo or Ring devices and have Sidewalk enabled.

If your internet goes down, your Echo or Ring devices can still operate using the Sidewalk network from a neighbor. This only works if there is someone with Sidewalk enabled and within range of your devices (close neighbors). The Sidewalk network should reach the street outside your house. The broadcast range is fluid, depending on how close the device (Sidewalk bridge) is to the outside walls of the house. I’d estimate that it would reach not more than 100 to 200 feet from your house.

I’m sure persistent hackers have already put the lie to most of this, though.

Not sure how a Ring doorbell will work over a “low bandwidth” connection to a neighbor across the street. But then I’m not sure why anyone would want to join Sidewalk in the first place.

That’s way different than all the hype. I still wouldn’t allow anyone to use my bandwidth. The only spies we have in our house are our cell phones.

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I think you might have forgotten your ISP. Your smart meter. Etc

The premise of Sidewalk, as written and in a vacuum, is fine. 80kb/s peak bandwidth for highly limited connectivity isn’t going to make a difference for most wired broadband internet.

However we know that the 'Zon covets more information than just your shopping habits, that their devices have a history of vulnerabilities, and even without the prior two almost anything that’s inexpensive and widely deployed will be broken into.

The fact that almost all IoT is wifi just makes it worse - someone driving around can f__k with and likely gain access to your network. Even worse, the only ‘out-of-band’ management that’s offered (if at all) is typically Bluetooth which is also open to exploitation - often from further away than you might think with decent antenna.

I work for an ISP and DO NOT RECOMMEND using the supplied router.

I have but one step better access than the typical helpdesk tech to the management interface for subscriber routers and the amount of information I can pull is insane. Exhaustive device logs. A profile for every currently- and recently-connected device. The management UI users can might log into locally (with admin access). Remote management well beyond that which the user UI can perform (albeit generally limited to the services the ISP provisions to the router).

I’m pretty sure that someone with god-mode access could tell you what reprehensible subreddits you’re accessing at 1 in the morning on your iphone (in incognito mode).

Also note that if that router costs the ISP more than a months’ rental fee they overpaid. Security is perfunctory and updates generally only relate to value-added services (i.e. VoIP, IPTV, any lingering smarthome services that ISPs are still selling, etc).

So … yeah. Avoid ISP routers. If you’re not renting the thing, by all means keep it around as a backup. But don’t use it any more than you absolutely have to.

My ISP doesn’t listen via microphones… and neither does my smartmeter. I can talk around both of those and not see targeted ads later.