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Digital media firm and popular YouTube channel Gamers Nexus spent more than 500 hours and about $70,000 spotting out
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Working with hardware reviewer Level1Techs and three independent security researchers, the team found LG's sets scanning a home's entire Wi-Fi network using UPnP, a protocol that lets devices find and talk to each other automatically, mapping every phone, laptop, and smart device connected to it.
Key facts
- LG Ad Solutions' president of global ad sales, Serge Matta, previously ran ad-measurement firm Comscore, which the SEC charged in 2019 with inflating revenue by roughly $50 million
- Digital media company and popular YouTube channel Gamers Nexus spent more than 500 hours and about $70,000 finding out
- The microphone stays live for 10 to 15 seconds after someone stops talking, catching whatever the room says next, whether or not anyone addressed the TV
- That data runs through Alphonso Inc., the ACR partner LG took a controlling stake in back in 2021 and has been locked in lawsuits ever
Summary
Gamers Nexus found LG TV sets still scan a household's entire Wi-Fi network and can capture microphone audio while appearing off or unplugged from the internet. LG settled with Texas regulators in May, agreeing to stop collecting viewing data without informed consent. Separate security researchers found unpatched remote-access bugs and residential-proxy code, software that quietly reroutes strangers' internet traffic through a buyer's home connection. What does an LG smart TV do when nobody’s watching?