There was another thread with a paywalled article, but here’s the actual study that found that smart TVs use “automatic content recognition” to build an ad profile for you based on what’s on your screen… including HDMI content streamed from a laptop, game console, etc. Yikes.
At a high level, ACR works by periodically capturing the content displayed on a TV’s screen and matching it against a content library to detect the content being viewed on the TV. It is essentially a Shazam-like technology for audio/video content on the smart TV [38]. ACR is implemented by all major smart TV manufacturers, including Samsung [9] and LG [55 ].
Our findings indicate that (1) ACR operates even when it is used as a “dumb” display via HDMI; (2) opt-out mecha- nisms stop ACR traffic; (3) ACR works differently in the UK as com- pared to the US.
So it seems like you’re opted-in by default, but you can stop ACR traffic by simply configuring six different options on Samsung, or eleven different options on LG.
Oh, and this doesn’t seem to happen when you’re using native streaming apps like Netflix or Disney+, because hey, they wouldn’t want to infringe on those companies’ rights by spying on them, right?
Table 1 describes the settings that you need to configure on LG and Samsung TVs to stop ACR behavior.
Those shouldn’t exist at all, and if they have to, the settings should be expressly asked about as part of the initial setup, not buried in a menu that nobody goes to unless they’re specifically looking for the options.
This why I go out of my way to manually block all traffic from my televisions to my router.
Get a Google TV. Sure, they father days, but at least you don’t connect the TV online, which also sends screenshots of what you’re watching to the producer…
It’s what most of us do, sure. This is more on the off-chance there’s a software update is required for fixing a design problem with a product. (Had to with an older smart television) So theres a lot of people who already have theirs connected but don’t realize it’s even an easy option, router-side.
What happens when there’s an open Wi-Fi connection close enough for the smart TV to connect to?
No idea. My closest neighbour is 250 m/820 feet away, so not something I need to think about.
I just block at firewall since I need lan access to control the tv with automation.
Lot of people saying they don’t give internet access to their TVs.
Fine, but that doesn’t work for cord-cutters who opted out of cable to go with streaming. And if you keep your TV away from internet but have a cable box, it will be doing all the tracking in this paper (and worse) then sending it to the cable provider.
So short of sticking with DVD/Bluray (unconnected) or over-the-air broadcast TV, there’s no way to stop from getting tracked.
The paper also lists domains where the data is being sent. You could always try blocking the destination addresses at the router level.
AFAICT, keeping the TV offline (i.e. not connected to any wifi) and plugging in a laptop/Chromecast/etc. via HDMI would eliminate both sides of the problem. You can still use streaming services on the laptop, but the TV would be unable to phone home.
There’s always the yar har option as well, which is also effectively implemented with a laptop.
Time for a lawsuit.
Since the presence of a TV in your house is a commercial benefit for the companies who make them, AND you do not actually have control over them, it is clear that the ‘sales contract’ was fraudulent and part of a bad-faith act on the manufacturers’ part.
So I say a class-action lawsuit is in order: Each person who bought (say) an LG TV gets back 100% of their purchase price, plus some reimbursement for being spied on - probably a per-month amount. Then LG has to pay a punitive fee on top of their payouts to customers.
I know that everyone is screaming “that will never work!” and “They’ll go bankrupt!” I don’t care - SOMETHING has to change to remind these evil fuckers that they need our business, or the abuse will just ramp up.
Bankrupt them all. Tear down the entire industry. Tear down the entire economy and start again from scratch if that’s what it takes.
If they can’t be reined in legally, then it will happen illegally - and probably violently.
