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Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

xfinity.com

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Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#231

Post by pixl97 »

kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #125
hamhock666 wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> ... I can't imagine a world where Congress could actually achieve something that widely helpful for regular citizens. The solution is to not use the internet if you care about your privacy.

We are now treating foreign students with suspicion when they don't have a satisfactory internet footprint. Only a matter of time until that gets turned against the citizenry. Submit to surveillance capitalism or go to jail you deviant.

Heh, soon your modem will report to the SS on how many undesirables you are sheltering in your home.

Us humans love building the Torment Nexus.

Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#232

Post by pixl97 »

Aurornis wrote: post #55
snarf21 wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Curious: What about adding a small battery powered WiFi device to your dogs collar? Would that look like a person moving around the house? What about a WiFi controlled mini drone that flew around you house? [Note: this should be illegal]

A much easier alternative is to not enable the feature on your router. It's an opt-in feature. If you don't set it up, they aren't generating the home/away chart like shown in the article.

It's an opt-in feature, for now.

If they find some way to sell the data you'll quickly find it difficult to opt-out of.

Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#234

Post by bix6 »

Can anyone recommend a worthwhile setup for me? I am interested in switching my setup on Cox. It seems the Arris S33 plus Unifi Dream Router is one of my best options for good speed and features like ad blocking and VLAN? Best to buy direct from the manufacture or is Amazon ok?

Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#236

Post by dcow »

pixl97 wrote: post #223
dcow wrote: post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And how do you technically stop an ISP from using the radio in their hardware to detect small changes in phase angle of signals in your home?

Disconnect and ground the antenna and supply your own equipment?

I thought we were talking about a solution that the tech industry could implement and deploy en masse to users, because it’s just, like TLS and browser standards. That’s usually what is being discussed when these give everyone privacy topics come up. The people that care enough to ground their antenna are already using their own hardware. And the ISP will deter hardware modification by charging you for damaged leased hardware. Or you’ll be in an arms race where the ISP’s firmware will flag the unit as defective because the radio doesn't work and cut off access till you fix it.

I guess you could put it in a cage. Maybe I should go door to door selling privacy cages. Do people pay for tinfoil hats these days?

Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#237

Post by SoftTalker »

lynndotpy wrote: post #166
margalabargala wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hmm. That misses the broader reality. What you're missing, is that you are allowed to use your own modem. You can purchase an Arris Surfboard, and use that. They still have control of that modem, but can gather no downstream data. That the devices are not distributed by Comcast personally is not relevant to you being able to do this.

The people who do this will be a vanishingly small minority. It's not as easy to set up one's own modem as it is their own router, IME. And even then, going with your own router is rare.

You also get better rates if you use their equipment.

Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#238

Post by SoftTalker »

lrvick wrote: post #136
jhowison wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can turn off the shared hotspot: https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/disable-xfinity-wif...

And they can turn it right back on again.

You can unplug your modem when you're not using it.

Re: Xfinity using WiFi signals in your house to detect motion

#240

Post by casper14 »

knetl wrote: post #162

Is Xfinity licensing Wifi Motion™ from Cognitive Systems?[0] "WiFi Motion, Cognitive’s Wi-Fi Sensing solution, is an innovative software platform that leverages AI and sophisticated algorithms to transform existing Wi-Fi signals into a motion sensing network." Another company operating in this space is Origin Wireless. They demonstrated breathing detection with WiFi in 2017[1]. They've since partnered with ISPs to of…

Yes
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