this post was submitted on 11 Jun 2024
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As the other reply mentions, aside from these devices representing a security vulnerability, there have been numerous cases where the devices themselves got hijacked. In some cases they can even get bricked via updates. There's also a privacy concern with these companies collecting data on how you use the device.
Does this also apply when not using the official app? I recently bought a Phillips bulb (not Hue) and set up Home Assistant for it, along with the Matter bridge. This turned out to also connect it to the Wi-Fi, but I never installed a manufacturer app.
Would blocking internet access via parental controls on the router be enough to mitigate such threats, or is its mere presence in an internet-connected network dangerous?
The itself app isn't typically the issue. It's the remote server that the appliance and the app connect to that's the problem. What happens is that the appliance uses your wifi to talk to the company server, and that server pushes updates to it, does tracking, and so on. As long as the appliance can't connect to the internet there's no danger from it. Typically, the best approach is to avoid configuring the connection in the first place.