You still need people on site to empty the freezers before they are defrosted, so it’s not like you wouldn’t have someone on site available to turn a dial or flip a switch (even at the direction of a remote expert).

In the article the manufacturer did blame out of date firmware, and the customer's failing to keep firmware up to date. So sounds like the classic circular logic of “why does my toaster need internet access?” “So it can get security updates.” “Why does it need security updates?” “Because it has internet access.”