Bricked by Design
The Echelon smart bike controversy is a painful lesson in digital ownership. A mandatory firmware update has locked users out of third-party apps, proving that the hardware you paid for may not truly belong to you.
The Firefox Controversy
How did Mozilla, a champion of the open web, spark a community revolt with a single sentence? We deconstruct the Firefox privacy controversy and the critical lessons it teaches about digital trust and local control.
Another Glitch in the Cloud
When Ring users saw suspicious logins, the company called it a “visual bug.” We explore why this incident reveals the myth of the “digital fortress” and the dangers of trusting your home’s security to the cloud.
The Fragile Home: A Crisis of Ownership and the Case for a Thinking Home
You may not truly own your smart home devices. The 2025 Belkin Wemo and Futurehome debacles prove companies can brick your hardware or hold it for ransom, escalating the crisis of digital ownership.
The “Bricked” Home: Why Your Smart Gadgets Might Die Before Their Time
Your smart devices can be “bricked” overnight by a corporate decision. We explore the cautionary tales of Insteon, Google Nest, and Wink to reveal the profound risks of the cloud-dependent smart home model.