[Discuss] Off Topic and Proud of It: Untraceable Garage Door Openers: No Alexa, No Siri, no nothing

[markw at mohawksoft.com (markw at mohawksoft.com)]

I think your assessment of the NSA is a bit uninformed.

Its easy in these political times to look at the U.S. government as a
bunch of keystone cops and/or nothing more than political hacks.

The real truth is that is congress and the politicians. Its as bad as I've
ever seen it in my 58 years.

However bad it seems in the news, at least to date, almost all of the
departments on which we depend really are staffed by people who take their
job very seriously. The NSA has a job that could quite easily turn evil,
but they are amazingly professional. They really don't care about us, they
aren't "political," and they really do good work. The NSA is not a monster
because of the dedication of the people who run it. Personally, I have
absolutely no fear of the NSA.

I fear the FBI, I fear the state police, I don't fear my local police
because I know a bunch of them, but I do fear the Boston police also
because I know a bunch of them.

You want something to be afraid of? Corporate interests. Civil privacy,
keeping your medical records from insurance companies, stuff like that.


> So, if I understand correctly, OP is unable to find a garage door opener
> that doesn't have some kind of "smart speaker" integration built in.  And
> their conclusion based on this is that the NSA has forced these companies
> to make this move?
>
> I have little to no faith in the NSA, or the American government in
> general, but this seems like a case of attributing to oversight what could
> adequately be explained by profiteering.
>
> Anyway, I agree with Eric.  Make your own.  I'm assuming that the
> motorized
> part that actually moves the garage door is fine, and it's just the little
> clicker you keep in your car that's spying on you.  If it's built into the
> garage part, try identifying what part of the circuit board is doing what
> you don't want and physically disconnecting it.  I imagine it will
> incorporate a wireless NIC, and that cutting the traces going to the NIC
> would prevent it from phoning home.
>
> -DTC
>
> On Mon, Sep 27, 2021 at 7:06 AM Eric Chadbourne
> <eric.chadbourne at icloud.com>
> wrote:
>
>> You can always make your own.  Could probably do it over the weekend.
>> Might be a fun project.
>>
>> Eric
>> Chadbourne Consulting
>>
>> > On Sep 26, 2021, at 2:54 PM, MC <boumanmcc at mykolab.com> wrote:
>> >
>> > ???Okay...this is off-topic, but i'm sick and tired of living under
>> surveillance in this country and i'm not gonna tolerate the new NSA
>> stunt:
>> I can't buy a garage door opener without it having the option for a Siri
>> or
>> Alexa authorization. I just want a stupid motorized door......ANY
>> SUGGESTIONS????
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