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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8s6kz7 wrote

Anker used to be my go to brand for cheap electronics but after their spycam disaster with Eufy and now this, I don’t think I’ll be a repeat customer.

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sudifirjfhfjvicodke t1_j8sa74f wrote

I get the Eufy camera concerns, but practically every major electronics retailer has had a recall over battery issues at one point or another. As long as there isn't evidence that Anker is systematically ignoring battery concerns or there are widespread defects across multiple models, I don't see a reason not to trust their batteries even after this.

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8sarlj wrote

After the Eufy thing I’m not sure I trust them enough to plug a USB device of theirs into anything of mine.

I’m not as worried about fires.

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sudifirjfhfjvicodke t1_j8sbfuk wrote

Understandable. I'm personally not freaking out about it but I get why some would.

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YoungsterJoey017 t1_j8seth3 wrote

I don’t. it was an honest mistake in their software that has nothing to do with simple battery packs

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8shfo0 wrote

Honest mistakes are minor. This was not honest, or a mistake.

They marketed these devices as specifically “no cloud” security, because of the concerns over Ring and other devices like that.

Then it turns out that it was all made up.

Their devices sent images to the cloud. Unencrypted. AND SAVED IT THERE

Their devices sent video to the cloud. Unencrypted. For anyone with the right url to view.

There were numerous, numerous failings in the security model of this supposedly secure device. They knowingly went to market with it. They avoided owning up to it for 3 months. They continued to sell the defective product during that time frame.

This was not an honest mistake.

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Boxed_pi t1_j8sjorz wrote

I got rid of mine immediately, with the exception of two that point towards the street.

I originally had ring until they got bought out by Amazon.

now I’m at the point where i can’t trust any company with my privacy so I’m in the process of building my own security camera network from the ground up. Having some problems with chip shortages but it’s going well.

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[deleted] t1_j8u1yjx wrote

[deleted]

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Boxed_pi t1_j8u3i93 wrote

Yeah. Waiting for some zeros to come in then l I’ll be able to finish. I refuse to pay a 400% markup.

In the meantime, I’m working on my homelab.

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fuzzywinkerbean t1_j8suho6 wrote

Part of me wonders if it was a disconnect between development and product marketing honestly. Dev had one direction from management and then marketing had to find an angle to push and someone heard they were local only, wires got crossed and here we are.

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8syw61 wrote

And no executives knew anything about the mixup. No one approved this, it just happened.

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fuzzywinkerbean t1_j8tgxxf wrote

You'd be surprised how little executives know about the business going on below them, they just like seeing profits. I honestly don't think this was malice or Anker/eufy thinking they could hide it from people forever, it was an oversight. Oversight doesn't mean it is ok though at all! These sorts of things should be avoided and corrected when pointed out for sure. I just don't really see the benefit they would gain from knowingly lying about it.

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8tmzsi wrote

Someone fucked up in an egregious way. While shit rolls downhill, I believe the ultimate accountability lies with the executive product owners who allowed this defective product to be marketed this way.

Whether or not they knew is immaterial, they should have known.

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fuzzywinkerbean t1_j8tx5xs wrote

Oh we are completely in agreement trust me. They definitely fucked up. Fucking up with people's data is massive, let alone personal CCTV footage.

I was just saying I don't think the management at Anker decreed "we must store this data secretly for our own purposes and never tell anyone! Muahahaah" like some people seem to think about this news.

Management are ultimately responsible for this oversight and someone below didn't do things right for sure. It is just Hanlon's razor laid out by a large corporate.

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detectiveDollar t1_j8xbool wrote

I agree with that, I think the other commenter meant that this isn't some NSA-style deliberate spying on the part of Anker/Eufy. Some have framed it that way, as if Anker/Eufy is going to put a secret camera and wifi transmitter into a power bank.

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YoungsterJoey017 t1_j8sv27l wrote

it’s a big company. this is the most likely case, but people are quick to assume malicious intent.

regardless, i’m not gonna be scared to buy a battery pack because I’m scared they’ll intentionally put spying hardware inside.

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adz568 t1_j8sc986 wrote

Still the best powerbank I own, wouldn’t buy anything else from them

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PoopnEvryDay t1_j8ssaw3 wrote

Yeah. It sucks because They were known for their quality products.

I don't think they could win me back ever after the Eufy thing though.

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DanTrachrt t1_j8sd3y5 wrote

Out of the loop here, what happened with Eufy? Never even heard of Eufy before.

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8sdstd wrote

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/02/ankers-eufy-admits-problems-with-unencrypted-video-access-pledges-overhaul/

Their “no cloud” security cameras would actually allow third party access to unencrypted streams.

It took 3 months for them to come clean about the issue. An absolute disaster from a security perspective - multiple, multiple failings were required for those products to hit market.

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ahecht t1_j8sqhbn wrote

That article is really misleading.

> The encryption scheme on the URLs also seemed to lack sophistication; as the same researcher told Ars, it took only 65,535 combinations to brute-force,

It only takes 65,535 guesses if you already know the serial number, which is a 16-digit non-sequential alphanumeric string that would take longer than the age of the universe to guess.

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8syrdy wrote

I provided a source. You can do the same.

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ahecht t1_j8t0nhx wrote

https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/30/23486753/anker-eufy-security-camera-cloud-private-encryption-authentication-storage

If you read in between the fearmongering:

> the way we initially obtained the address required logging in with a username and password before Eufy’s website will cough up the encryption-free stream.

> that address largely consists of your camera’s serial number encoded in Base64

> On the plus side, Eufy’s serial numbers are long at 16 characters and aren’t just an increasing number. “You’re not going to be able to just guess at IDs and begin hitting them,” says Mandiant Red Team consultant Dillon Franke, calling it a possible “saving grace” of this disclosure. “It doesn’t sound quite as bad as if it’s UserID 1000, then you try 1001, 1002, 1003.”

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GENOCIDUS_REX t1_j8t5dx3 wrote

Ah, not as bad as it first looked, but:

> he points out that companies don’t tend to keep their serial numbers secret. Some stick them right on the box they sell at Best Buy — yes, including Eufy.

I’m good with condemning this massive lapse/lie about “no cloud” devices.

Their original statements, from that link: With secure local storage, your private data never leaves the safety of your home, and is accessible by you alone. False. Facial ID images were uploaded to the Eufy cloud. All recorded footage is encrypted on-device False. Footage was not encrypted. At all. Only the url was encrypted, not the footage. This is also known as a lie

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Mindestiny t1_j8wj1yw wrote

Whether or not they lied is a separate issue to whether or not your camera data was feasibly vulnerable to attack.

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[deleted] t1_j8t1h5j wrote

[deleted]

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ahecht t1_j8t228b wrote

There are two different parts of the URL, one is a 4-digit hexadecimal number that has 65,535 possibilities, the other is the 16-digit serial number that has 43-thousand-million-million-million possibilities. The "researcher" was only able to brute force it in 65,535 tries because they had physical access to the camera and were able to read the serial number off the label.

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NO_SPACE_B4_COMMA t1_j8st5gf wrote

To be fair, the eufy products are junk anyway.

Their batteries are amazing and definitely will stick to them for their batteries. Haven't found a better alternative yet!

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detectiveDollar t1_j8xc0f8 wrote

Their robovacs are pretty decent, unfortunately I fucked up and left the cat's water bowl on the ground and it ran into it and sucked up water.

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-RedXV- t1_j8svhro wrote

Have you found a good alternative for Anker?

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GoodMornEveGoodNight t1_j8svz1t wrote

I personally use a Romoss 30k. Dependable, economical, and reportedly uses high quality, sturdy plastic, and has cells sourced from the same plant that supplies iPhones, etc.

Dropped about 5-6 times from the top bunk to tiled floors. No issues, little deformation to the casing.

If you are asking about power banks that is.

I still use Anker cords in nearly all things.

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-RedXV- t1_j8syd41 wrote

Thanks! I'll check them out.

Edit: Just bought one and received 40% off too. Thanks again!

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GoodMornEveGoodNight t1_j8t05w9 wrote

Nice! Let me know how you like it once you have received it and used it!

Out of an ocean of power bank brands, Romoss was one of the firsts I found, and one I ended up sticking with lol.

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-RedXV- t1_j8t104t wrote

Will do! Anker has always been my go to but I did notice they're always more expense than others which I convinced myself that's good thing. I needed to buy another power bank because my wife is always taking the one that I use for work. She can just keep the old one now. lol

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do_do_do_do_do_do t1_j8tpvs7 wrote

I've had good experience with choetech even before anker had scandals

LTT basically slotted UGREEN directly into the sponsor position that Anker used to have

but more recently i've been most partial to ikea. you wouldn't think of them at first but they actually have some very good and price competitive offerings

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dookiebuttholepeepee t1_j8u3r6e wrote

They turned trash really quickly. Just like G-Tech/G-Drive did. I had a power bank die after a few months. Expensive shit too. And two heavy duty flashlights have had issues after swapping them out once already. Fuck Anker.

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Juliette787 t1_j8t7ujg wrote

Any recommendations for a good brand? I look at Amazon… but not happy with knock off brands

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Heinousblaziken t1_j8smpr5 wrote

I had an ankle wall block go bad. Don’t even know how that happens.

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saml01 t1_j8u6s6q wrote

You bought a Chinese camera and you didn't know this? Bullshit.

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