Last week saw gaming website GamersNexus publish a video detailing a study that alleges LG TVs can be used as listening devices. Now, LG has officially responded, denying the allegations while confirming some details.
GamersNexus’ video showed that LG TVs actively scan local networks, and could be hacked to become secret listening devices, even if the device’s microphone was disabled. The video shows a man-in-the-middle attack being used on an LG G5 TV to turn the TV into a spying device.
LG has released a statement in response to the video. In the statement, the company acknowledges that its TVs do actively scan local networks, but says that smart TVs by other manufacturers do this as well. It denies claims that its TVs can record or transcribe conversations without a user manually activating the voice listening system.
“Speech-recognition results may be used to support voice-related features but are not uploaded later when the TV is offline or when connectivity is restored,” reads LG’s statement, titled Understanding Privacy on LG Smart TVs. “Features such as Automatic Content Recognition (ACR), voice recognition, and interest-based advertising are optional. These features are not enabled by default. Users can choose to enable these features and can manage or withdraw consent through TV settings,” LG continues.
LG’s full statement can be found here.
