Domestic technology is the incorporation of applied science into the home. There are multiple aspects of domestic technology. On one level, there are home appliances, home automation and other devices commonly used in the home, such as clothes dryers and washing machines.
On another level, domestic technology recognizes the use of applied science to construct homes to achieve a particular goal, such as energy efficiency or self-sufficiency. For more information, read about self-sufficient homes. It has been claimed that domestic technology has led to decreases in the time people spend on household work, although the factual basis of this claim is disputed.[1]
Many technologies are now routinely used around the home. For example, microwave ovens and washing machines,[2] among others.
See main article: Electric light.
See main article: List of cooking appliances.
See main article: Food storage.
See also: Information and Communications Technology and Home computer.
See main article: Distributed generation.
See main article: Home security.
See main article: Home automation and Internet of things.
In the 21st century, especially by the 2010s, home automation has increasingly[3] been introduced into the modern household, colloquially referred to as smart home technology.
While the technology was already in development in the 1990s,[4] only in the next two decades was local area networking ubiquitous in the home, thanks to the introduction of computer networking.
Since modern home networks often make use of wireless networking (e.g. Wi-Fi), modern automation can easily be set up without having to run wires through the building. Alternatively, they can be connected to wired networks.
See also: Botnet.
Unlike older forms of domestic technology, smart appliances are Internet-facing, and there have been many concerns that cyberattacks may be conducted on insecure home appliances. A kind of attack is to deploy malware on smart home appliances known as botnets, which can be controlled by a remote attacker.[5]