As a layman, can someone explain what the ramifications of smart devices sharing your data is. I know it’s bad, but I don’t understand why it’s bad and how it’s used against you.
this post was submitted on 05 Dec 2025
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A detailed room-mapping scan is basically a wealth report disguised as vacuum telemetry: square footage, room count, layout complexity, “bonus” spaces like offices or nurserie; all of it feeds straight into socioeconomic profiling. And once companies have that floor plan, they’re not just storing it; they’re monetizing it, feeding it into ad networks, data brokers, and pricing algorithms that adjust what you see (=and what you pay) based on the shape of your living space.
And a mapped floor plan also quietly exposes who lives in the home, how they move, and what can be inferred from that.
Isn’t this information already available? Like if I’m house shopping I know how many rooms the house has and the area of the house.
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Libre alternative?
remote kill command had been issued to his device.
What the actual fuck?!
...when i 'buy' something, should i not own and be able to use it and all functions until the end of it's mechanical processes?..
what...? how much money did that Roomba cost for him to spend that much time and effort on recoding it?!
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while this is good, we really don't need all these smart devices in the first place
Yeah, mine has it. I have to go into the app once a week and manually delete it.
Smart vaccuum that needs an app to use. Are we really this stupid, everyone?
Play stupid games win stupid prizes.
I have a standard vacuum. I spend about 10 minutes a day vacuuming. Miele has no telemetry whatsoever lol
I gotta say, I've never really found the appeal of the self-propelled vacuum cleaners. They're incredibly finicky and prone to getting snagged on surfaces. They don't have particularly good suction and their waste storage is minimal. Tons of moving parts that wear through easily over time. Belts, fans, and wheels all get worn away from the device's heat and exhaustive regular use.
The time savings is minimal and the expense is extraordinary. I just don't think its worth the trouble.
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That's like a month old news article
No one should be outraged. That is how all robovacs are working - use LIDAR to map area -> send back to server -> server calculates optimal cleaning route -> sends back info to vac -> vac cleans. Vac cant ping back to server - server thinks vac is dead. No killswitch is needed.
Also, app is not a necessity except we are forced to use it. But many would not like to lose an ability to track progress or start and stop cleaning from their phone outside of the home network. For these features, app and external server is a must.
The only real issue with robo vacs is that it is an IoT device. We should make manufacturers and brands to let us choose if we want to selfhost their software. But that would never happen.
This article IMO is full of bs and ragebait.
What I don't understand is why the person that owns the device wrote the following in their blog post:
How could a simple IP block disable a vacuum cleaner that is supposed to work offline as well? - Source
This seems like that device was sold to him as "offline" capable. Where does that claim even come from? From a cursory glance I don't see that product advertised that way anywhere.
Now, I'd be totally in favor that such devices working offline should be the norm, but then again, the person writing the blog should know how these devices currently work.
Say, if he got it because it was advertised as an offline device then why would he connect it to wifi anyway? The more I read this article, the more questionable this so called "IT specialist" is.
This is how it has been for a long time - robovacs do talk to a server. Should it? Not necessary. But they undeniably do.