A secure alternative is to vpn into your home network and then use a browser for the device’s web interface. It is a bit more of a hassle as you need to do the vpn connect first and disconnect afterward but it is the most secure method. I have this working. Also, there is no cost involved which is always nice.
And for automation, I am going to write some cron jobs on my 24/7 linux server (low power odroid, could be an rpi) that uses the device’s api so I can do pretty much whatever I want. Takes some work of course.