Year: 2016
Runtime: 95 min
Language: english
Director: John Moore
Self-made millionaire Mike Regan’s life unravels when his IT consultant, Ed, uses his technological skills to stalk his teenage daughter and threaten his family. Mike's sophisticated "smart home" becomes a tool for Ed's manipulation, exposing personal secrets and creating a dangerous game of cat and mouse. Facing a modern-day nemesis in an age of compromised privacy, Mike must use his intelligence and past relationships to protect his loved ones and stop Ed’s relentless pursuit.
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Mike Regan is a self-made aviation tycoon who lives in a cutting-edge smart house filled with the latest technology, sharing it with his wife Rose and their 17-year-old daughter Kaitlyn. His company is developing a game-changing app called “Omni Jet” that could boost the business and attract crucial capital through a stock offering, a process that must clear the scrutiny of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
At work, Ed Porter is brought in to fix a stubborn Wi‑Fi signal, and the moment the password ReganHouse1 is discovered, it signals a weak approach to security. Porter also upgrades the car’s GPS and claims a past at the National Security Agency, along with service in a Kandahar exercise, which adds an unsettling aura to his image. Porter eventually meets Kaitlyn through social media, and a relationship develops, but Mike fires him after Kaitlyn invites Porter into the house, ending his promising career at the company.
From there, Porter slides from professional access to close, unauthorized access. He quietly begins to monitor the home’s sensors and cameras, slipping into the shadows of the smart house to watch Kaitlyn and even secretly recording her in the shower. He escalates his control by sending fake emails to Mike’s clients and to the SEC, threatening the company’s survival. He also steals the sense of security the family relies on by remotely controlling the house’s technology, and he takes his deceit further by manipulating Rose with a spoof email that claims a mammogram test is positive for breast cancer—news that proves devastating, even though the physician later confirms the results were negative.
As the threat becomes personal, Mike confronts Porter, who forcibly stays in the family’s orbit by continuing to manipulate their digital environment. When Kaitlyn learns that Porter has uploaded a video of her, she is mortified and blames her father for letting the technology into their home. The clash comes to a head as Porter taunts Mike through the car’s navigation system, and he even uses the video to trigger fear. A catastrophic moment follows as Porter remotely disables the car’s braking system, causing a collision with a stalled truck and a ruined vehicle.
Desperate for a way out, Mike seeks the aid of Henrik, an independent IT expert. Henrik explains Porter’s true past—revealing that the man’s real name is Richard Edward Portman, that his father’s suicide when he was six helps explain his behavior, and that the supposed NSA employment and Kandahar photo were fabrications. Henrik also advises a drastic plan: dismantle the smart infrastructure, purge emails, and wipe bank accounts and files.
To secure evidence, Henrik engineers a risky distraction: he manipulates a waitress Porter is obsessed with by hijacking her phone and texting Porter to lure him away to a coffee shop. Seizing the moment, Mike enters Porter’s apartment to collect thumb drives containing critical evidence and manages a narrow escape just as Porter returns. Porter realizes a hidden intruder was in his space and tries to turn the tide by framing Mike for assault, leading to a brief arrest when Mike attempts to bring the evidence to the authorities.
After his release, Mike returns home to find Kaitlyn and Rose tied up and gagged. A tense struggle unfolds; Porter fires a window and Mike lands a punch, sending Porter to the ground. Porter dies from the ensuing injuries as Rose frees herself and pleads with Mike not to kill him.
In the aftermath, the company’s workers commend Mike for guiding the family through the nightmare and for steering the successful development of the app. The smart house is restored, and life gradually returns to a semblance of normalcy, with the family bonded by the ordeal and the promise of continued innovation.
Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 16:16
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