Independent testing of current LG OLED televisions has raised fresh privacy concerns after researchers reported that the devices recorded audio while apparently in standby, scanned other devices connected to the same home network and transmitted information linked to LG’s advertising operations.
The investigation, published over the weekend in the United States by hardware channel Gamers Nexus in collaboration with Level1Techs, examined network traffic and other behavior on recent LG smart TVs.
LG smart TVs recorded audio in standby and scanned home networks, researchers say
(Photo: LG)
According to the researchers, LG’s webOS operating system repeatedly scanned the local network to identify devices unrelated to the television’s immediate operation, including smartphones, smartwatches and other connected equipment.
The researchers said the TVs collected not only internal IP addresses but also information about nearby Wi-Fi networks, their signal strength and geolocation data.
They said some of that information was transmitted to LG Ad Solutions, the company’s targeted advertising arm.
LG says it has sold about 216 million smart televisions globally, while its advertising division says it has access to more than 360 million connected devices in the United States alone.
Audio recorded while the TV appeared off
The most significant finding involved what happened when the television was in standby mode.
In controlled tests, researchers said the built-in microphones continued recording and storing clear audio even while the screen was dark and the television appeared to be off.
When the TV was disconnected from the network, the researchers said audio and text files continued to accumulate in local storage. Once the internet connection was restored, encrypted data was uploaded to company servers.
The researchers also identified what they described as serious remote-code-execution vulnerabilities in the television’s operating system. Those flaws are now being handled through a responsible disclosure process with the manufacturer, according to the report.
ynet requested comment from LG but had not received a response by publication time. The researchers behind the original investigation also said their requests for comment had gone unanswered.
Smart TVs have become data platforms
The findings highlight a wider shift in the smart TV industry.
Modern connected televisions are no longer simply screens for watching content. Their software can also collect data about viewing habits, connected devices and user behavior, helping manufacturers and advertising businesses monetize the hardware long after it has been sold.
Similar privacy concerns have previously surrounded other major technology companies and smart-device manufacturers.
Samsung, for example, faced criticism after privacy language associated with its voice-recognition technology warned users not to discuss sensitive personal information near certain televisions because spoken words could be captured and transmitted as part of the service.
U.S. television maker Vizio has also previously faced regulatory action over undisclosed collection of viewing data.
Platforms including Roku and Google TV widely use automatic content recognition, or ACR, technology, which can analyze what is being shown on screen to identify viewing behavior.
Chinese manufacturers including TCL and Hisense have also faced scrutiny in Europe and the United States over privacy policies and communications between televisions and remote servers.
Regulators may take an interest
The legal implications differ by country.
In the European Union, strict data protection rules limit excessive collection of personal information and generally require clearly defined consent, potentially exposing companies to regulatory scrutiny if collection is found to violate those requirements.
In the United States, federal privacy regulation is more fragmented, while states including California have adopted stronger consumer privacy protections.
In Israel, where smart TVs and other connected-home devices are widely used, awareness of local network monitoring by consumer electronics remains comparatively limited, and regulators rarely intervene in software installed by default on household appliances.
The researchers concluded that the default configuration of the tested televisions enabled broad data collection that they said was not necessary for basic operation.
Their recommendation for privacy-conscious users was to disconnect smart televisions from the home internet entirely and instead use an external streaming device whose permissions and network access can be more closely controlled.
The broader warning extends beyond LG: as televisions become increasingly connected and advertising-supported, the screen in the living room may also be collecting far more information about the household around it than many owners realize.