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by the_mitsuhiko 1109 days ago
> Why would a power meter allow an unauthenticated client to turn the thing on and off wireless?!? Sure, if you flip a switch handling a large current often enough, something will break (and I am impressed it's not the AC in this case).

I would guess until recently power meters just had no reason to be secured. We live in a multi unit building (I would guess around 120 of them). There is a shared key that goes to the central electricity room where the meters for all units are. I could turn off anyone's electricity by either unscrewing the main fuses there or by switching the breaker. People are a lot more trustworthy in practice than you would think.
1 comments
hulitu 1109 days ago
> I could turn off anyone's electricity by either unscrewing the main fuses there or by switching the breaker

In some countries this is crime which might land you in jail.

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the_mitsuhiko 1109 days ago
Indeed. But the point is that it's the law and morals that stands between you and a dark apartment, and not some security device on a breaker.
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mrguyorama 1109 days ago
Most people abstain from committing crime not because they will go to jail, but because pointlessly harming another human being is stupid, a waste of time and effort, pointless, and only makes the world worse.
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xeromal 1109 days ago
You missed the point of the story.
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