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posted by Fnord666 on Sunday August 13 2017, @02:56AM   Printer-friendly
from the when-bad-ideas-go-wrong dept.

According to The Register a firmware update mistake has managed to brick hundreds of internet-connected door locks:

The upshot is you can't use the builtin keypad on the devices to unlock the door. Lockstate's smart locks are popular among Airbnb hosts as it allows them to give guests an entry code to get into properties without having to share physical keys. Lockstate is even a partner with Airbnb.

Earlier this week, though, new software was automatically sent out to folks' $469 Lockstate 6000i locks – one of the upstart's top residential smart locks – which left the keypad entirely useless. The crashed locks – which connect to your home Wi-Fi for remote control and monitoring as well as firmware updates – are now going to be out of action for at least a week.

[...] The physical key on the lock should still work, but that's going to be cold comfort for a lot of Airbnb users, who prefer to keep the physical keys to themselves and set an access code for each lodger that stops by.


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  • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Monday August 14 2017, @02:06AM

    by Grishnakh (2831) on Monday August 14 2017, @02:06AM (#553420)

    Stop blaming users and start looking into how to make software products that are as reliable as a car or a washing machine

    Why shouldn't users be blamed? They're the ones with the ultimate authority. The buck stops with them, so ultimately it's all their fault.

    If you disagree, then please explain why a company should even bother putting out a quality product, and not just half-ass it and throw something out there. Exactly what reason is there to make one of these things reliable? I can't think of one. Will consumers look carefully to see if these things are as reliable as washing machines? No. Then what exactly is the incentive? Professional pride? That doesn't help the company make more profit, but cutting corners and shipping early do.

    The only time companies have an actual responsibility to put out a quality product is if:

    1) they'll get in legal or governmental trouble if they screw up (either they'll run afoul of some regulation, or they'll get sued to death),
    Examples: not meeting crash standards means you can't even sell your car on the market; making a car that blows up too easily when in a crash means you get sued for ridiculous amounts of money and lose.

    2) the reputation they'll acquire will be so lousy compared to their competition (or compared to not buying the product at all) that people won't want to buy it.
    Examples: American cars in the 80s, IBM DeskStar hard drives, possibly Microsoft's Windows Phones (arguable)

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