Advances in sensor and communication technologies have transformed traditional homes into smart homes, equipped with sensors and actuators for various functionalities like smart lighting, temperature control, irrigation, solar monitoring, entertainment, and security. This transition is powered by the Internet of Things (IoT) architecture, enabling smart home hubs to integrate and control devices with different communication protocols. However, this shift has also introduced new security and privacy issues in the Smart Home IoT (SH-IoT) environment. To address these challenges, new communication protocols with cryptographic features have been developed, and a unified standard called Matter has been created to promote interoperability among different device manufacturers. This paper presents a comprehensive survey of recent trends and advances in the smart home IoT landscape, focusing on communication protocols, their security issues and protection features against vulnerabilities in the SH-IoT environment.