this post was submitted on 23 Aug 2026
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260
Comcast turns your Xfinity WiFi into a home motion detector (www.bleepingcomputer.com)
submitted 1 day ago by just_another_person@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world
66 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Make no mistake, this is 100% going to be Comcast's alternative to more expensive surveillance options a la Flock, or workplace presence sensor arrays.

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[–] Kalon@feddit.online 5 points 19 hours ago (3 children)

I had (still have) my own modem, but switched to their cheep "prepaid" Xfinity NOW service. Fast enough for my needs but I'm annoyed to learn I can only use the refurbished modem they have given me. No idea if its capable of presence monitoring but Its one of their old ones and I'm sure it already leaks metrics I'd rather not share.

[–] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago

Wrap it in copper and run a hard line to a second router.

[–] Manjushri@piefed.social 3 points 16 hours ago

OPs article links to another article at TechCrunch . That article states:

As first reported by The Verge, the new Wi-Fi Motion feature works for advanced Xfinity gateways XB7 and newer models and is opt-in, which means users can choose whether to switch on the feature in the Xfinity app.

So it seems like for now it's only this one model that can do it, if you believe them. Frankly, I wouldn't sniff that opt-in claim either because I'm fairly certain I know which orifice they pulled it out of.

[–] just_another_person@lemmy.world 2 points 17 hours ago

If it's just a modem with no WiFi, then it's not capable of this specific thing.