Editing 3109: Dehumidifier

{{comic
| number    = 3109
| date      = June 30, 2025
| title     = Dehumidifier
| image     = dehumidifier_2x.png
| imagesize = 295x327px
| noexpand  = true
| titletext = It's important for devices to have internet connectivity so the manufacturer can patch remote exploits.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created WITHOUT INTERNET ACCESS. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

In this comic, [[Randall]] mocks the recent trend of various appliances, such as stoves or juicers, that do not require an internet connection to work, being connected to the internet. A {{w|dehumidifier}} removes moisture from the air.  There are no obvious ways to improve dehumidifier operation without changes to its hardware, so it's unclear what benefit being able to receive updates via the internet would confer. [[Cueball]]'s sarcastic reply underlines the unlikeliness of a situation occurring where an update would be necessary. The implication is that many of these internet-connected devices are examples of over-engineering a solution to do things 'because we can' or because it makes it sound advanced to the customer, rather than because it offers any real added value.

Dehumidifiers can provide information which it would be useful to access remotely.  For instance, the level of water in the storage tank, the percent of time the humidifier is paused for deicing, logging the humidity level, and whether the humidity exceeds a certain limit (which could indicate dehumidifier malfunction, or that the dehumidifier is inadequate to the conditions).  A local wireless network, like wifi, is a reasonable way to send this information to a user or to other local devices.  

However, many devices like this now offer, or even require connections to a special app, or to the internet.  They typically connect to servers run by the device's manufacturer.  When that server goes away, often the devices stop working.

The title text says that authorized internet access is required to patch remote exploits (i.e. harmful unauthorized access from the internet). If this is the only use case that requires internet access, it would be much simpler to remove the attack vector for remote exploits by not having it connected to the internet in the first place.  It is conceivably possible that remote access could be attained with a carefully crafted atmosphere, but seems unlikely.  But more particularly, the most likely source of remote access, even given a different case for internet access, would probably be the remote updater itself.

A related device was previously referred to in [[3044: Humidifier Review]],   and the issue of possibly considering online protection of devices that (arguably) should not be so easily exploitable was looked at in [[463: Voting Machines]] and [[1966: Smart Home Security]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}


: [A salesman is showing Cueball a dehumidifier, with a "SALE" label on it.]

: Salesman: This dehumidifier model features built-in WiFi for remote updates.
: Cueball: Great! That will be really useful if they discover a new kind of water.

==Trivia==

Technically, there are many different kinds of liquid water, based on the possible isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen atoms that its molecules are composed of. There are 3 naturally-occurring {{w|isotopes of hydrogen}}<!-- including one of 'trace' quantities-->, with 6 possible combinations for its two atoms in a water molecule, and 4 naturally-occurring {{w|isotopes of oxygen}}<!-- including one of 'trace' quantities-->. This gives 6 × 4 = 24 kinds of naturally-occurring water molecules, which could be present in liquid water in any proportions, although 99.7% of all such molecules<!-- based upon given prevalences --> will be the 'normal' version of water. (The isotopic ratios in "natural" water are relatively stable, so there's very little variation in water found in nature.) There are also synthetic isotopes of each, all radioactive, most having short half-lives<!-- as are the two 'trace' Hydrogen and Oxygen ones, so maybe it should be 2x3=6 kinds of stable water..?-->. How many of these could be used to constitute water would depend in part on one's definition of whether a molecule of water could be said to have been formed prior to the decay of its constituent atoms. Each isotopically-distinct version of water has very slightly different physical and chemical properties, though the differences are small and the versions hard to separate.  There are also 26 known {{w|phases of ice}} (solid water), each of which could be made from any combination of the isotopically-distinct versions of water in any proportions.

{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>