Forget the IoT. Meet the IoZ: our Internet of Zombie things

This article warns of a growing “Internet of Zombies” risk where abandoned, end-of-life, or cloud-dependent IoT and xIoT devices become inoperable or are repurposed by attackers, citing illustrative incidents (stuck school lights, Insteon hub outage, PetNet, Belkin NetCam) and research showing many devices are EOL or have critical vulnerabilities. It highlights real-world consequences (device resurrection by researchers, Mirai/RSOCKS botnets, HID Mercury zero-days, automotive telematics flaws), discusses the scale of the problem and market/policy responses, and suggests manufacturer responsibility and consumer caution as mitigations.