Being spied on by your own television may sound like the premise of a science fiction thriller, but research shows it’s a true story.
Smart TVs from South Korean tech giant LG reportedly eavesdropped on conversations, secretly recorded them and uploaded the data to the internet.
Any LG set that can connect to the internet can record audio in the room it’s in using built-in microphones and webcams, even when in standby mode or with the screen turned off.
And even disconnecting the TV from the Internet doesn’t prevent the TV from recording audio again. All collected files are sent back to the company’s servers upon reconnection.
The findings come from a study conducted by YouTube channels Gamers Nexus and Level1Techs, with help from two security analysts.
They claim to have discovered extensive data collection, which is used to target advertising for the company’s LG Ad Solutions division.
Steve Burke of Gamers Nexus told us The times: ‘The only reason to give a TV this kind of power is to overcome your horrors, not to make a better product.
“At the end of the day, we literally wouldn’t recommend LG smart products to anyone.”
Smart TVs from South Korean tech giant LG listen to conversations, secretly record them and upload that data to the internet, research shows
According to the study, LG TV’s data collection capabilities stem from its automatic content recognition (ACR) system.
This allows the device to capture snippets of audio and video, compare them to the media library, and keep track of exactly what’s on the screen or playing through the speakers.
LG uses this to track viewing and listening behavior to create more effective ad targeting profiles.
This is not unusual for smart TVs; However, Gamers Nexus discovered that the voice recognition ‘trigger window’ remains open for ten to fifteen seconds after a command is recognized.
During that extra time, the TV records everything said in the room, produces a transcript in simple language and stores it in memory.
In addition to recording your conversations, the study claims that LG TVs also track other devices in the home.
The TV scans Wi-Fi networks to look for connected devices such as phones and smartwatches to build a detailed family profile.
LG claims to track 386 million so-called ‘secondary devices’ in the US alone, significantly more than the 216 million smart TVs sold worldwide.
Researchers claim LG TVs also track devices on your Wi-Fi network to create a profile of who’s in the house
Gamers Nexus also published clips of LG executives referencing these capabilities in pitches to advertisers.
Julian Zilberbrand, head of data solutions at LG Ad Solutions, told Swoop, a marketing platform: “At LG we know who is in the LG household. We know what devices are available, we know what you are exposed to on TV and we know how we can extend that reach to mobile.’
Similarly, LG executives claimed in other conversations that they “owned” users’ televisions.
Serge Matta, the president of LG Ad Solutions, said in a video: “Because we own the glass, we own the glass, we own the TV.”
Justin Fromm, head of research at LG Ad Solutions, said in an interview on Beet.TV: “Because we own the glass… and we have direct ACR data… we understand everything that’s on the screen.”
This comes after a Which? Research found that smart TVs, speakers and even air fryers were all filled with trackers to collect user data.
Although LG users do ‘sign up’ for these features, the researchers claim that the terms and conditions are far too complicated for most people to fully understand.
LG owners sign up for ACR tracking by agreeing to a 50,000-word terms and conditions document, which would take most adults about three to four hours to read.
Which one? rated popular smart devices in six categories and gave each a privacy score, finding that some TVs, air fryers and smart speakers were packed with trackers
When installing any app on the TV, users are also presented with six matches, all with ‘select all’ checked by default.
By accepting any of these agreements, the user commits to accepting the collection of his data through ACR tracking.
The researchers recommend avoiding LG products or, if you already have one, permanently disconnecting them from your network.
Mr Burke added: ‘We believe the extent of LG’s data collection is intrusive and grotesque. Plus, we still believe that if you buy something, especially for thousands of dollars, you should own that thing.”
An LG spokesperson told the Daily Mail: ‘The claims made in the recently published video are untrue. LG TVs process voice data only when the voice button on the remote control is pressed, or when a wake-up word such as “Hello LG” is recognized after the user activates the Far-Field Voice Recognition feature.
“Other than these instances, the TVs do not collect or record ambient conversations. If the wake word is not recognized, no voice data is sent to the server; wake word detection is processed locally on the device and deleted immediately.
‘To provide smart TV functionalities, LG TVs also offer the ability to scan for nearby devices and connect to them on the same network. This is a standard feature commonly available on smart TVs and smart home devices.
‘The ACR (Automatic Content Recognition) feature is provided on an opt-in basis to provide personalized content recommendations, services and advertisements. If a user does not agree to the applicable optional agreement, the ACR data will not be used for advertising purposes.’
