It's insanity (literally, if you speak to some therapists, but that's a longer story).
My thermostat automatically keeps the temperature at the temperature I set. How much smarter does it need to be? My doorbell rings so I can hear it an answer the door, like the fully abled person I am. My fridge keeps things at the temperature I set. Where are the problems these smart devices are solving?
The first post of the linked forum thread says he was locked out of all his devices after a delivery driver misheard his automated doorbell response as saying something "inappropriate" and reported it to Amazon, who suspended his account for a week.
How far do I need to read into the thread to find the alternate story you're describing?
> ...an Amazon spokesperson said, "We work hard to provide customers with a great experience while also ensuring drivers who deliver Amazon packages feel safe. In this case, we learned through our investigation that the customer did not act inappropriately, and we’re working directly with the customer to resolve their concerns while also looking at ways to prevent a similar situation from happening again."
Seems like they kind of confirmed it? Or what dd you read that indicated otherwise?
"I was not truly in the dark for a week. My smart home runs mostly locally and Alexa really is just a polymorphic interface. I was just able to use Siri."
Even at that the only thing turned off was his Amazon Echo.
Initial reporting on this story, especially the right-wing press, made it out like he was physically locked out of him home, or his appliances were remotely disabled. Neither is at all accurate.
Just because we can do something doesn’t mean we should...
It's like we have opened Pandora's box allowing technology (with poor security) into our homes.
Devices controlled and maintained by companies with questionable ethics who only care about the stock holder.