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216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

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Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#651

Post by rustcleaner »

dillutedfixer wrote: post #382

As an owner of 2 LG OLEDs, I am not surprised at all. I neutered these things the first day I was past the return policy. Opened the back and unplugged the WiFi/BT chip, bought a cheap dumb universal remote with no mic in it, disagreed to all T&C in the TV, updated the firmware via USB and just use an AppleTV over HDMI for streaming. Kind of silly to have to go through all of this but hey thats where we are in 2026 i…

GrapheneOS is such a breath of fresh air, truly you don't need the crApple device.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#652

Post by anon7000 »

titzer wrote: post #320
hn_submit wrote: post #299

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe we should push for legislation that prohibits the sale of customer data to third parties. Websites can use the data on their customers but they cannot share it with anyone else. Because aggregators are selling it cross-border after which you lose track and all control over it.

They shouldn't be able to collect it in the first place. The big companies have 10 page agreements that say they "value" your privacy and that they don't sell your data to third parties. They do value it, highly. And they don't sell it--they just hoard it, mine it, and sell increasingly accurate targeting. Why would they give it up? I mean, besides coughing it up with little objection to national security letters.

The problem is that this includes literally everything on a cloud service. My emails and documents on Gmail/Google Drive is my personal data. My email on Fastmail is my personal data, even if they’re privacy friendly. So that service would be illegal.

Even having an account at all, and being able to see that I have a subscription, or that I previously watched that video, is personal data they collected.

So the Privacy Policy is what you “agree” to let the company do with that data. How do you even begin to differentiate the superfluous stuff they track just for ads, on a technical level without workarounds?

And then think about banning “transferring personal data to a 3rd party.” Does that mean I can’t host account data on AWS, or use a hosted database, be causing I’m transferring data to a different company which can presumably also access it? That’s what the privacy policy has to allow, and why sites have so many “partner services”

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#653

Post by Huppie »

cesarb wrote: post #423
noir_lord wrote: post #397

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Works til they put a 5g modem in the damn things. My Samsung asked for internet access and I just laughed and said nope. It exists to displays pixels from a Linux box, utterly sick of living in a world where "is my TV manufacturer bugging our house?" Is a thing anyone has to ask.

> It exists to displays pixels from a Linux box, If you're not using the defining feature of a TV (the OTA tuner), why not buy a monitor instead of a TV? (Next time I have to replace our house's TV, I'm seriously considering buying a separate SBTVD tuner and a monitor instead of a TV, if ignoring the "smart" features of these TVs by not connecting them to a network starts getting too difficult.)

If you don't care much for display quality (or are willing to pay significantly more than what you'd be paying for a TV) that's doable.

I've tried finding a monitor big enough and with a decent panel for anywhere near the price of a TV... it's nearly impossible.

Then I tried finding 'dumb TVs' with at least somewhat decent panels... also almost impossible.

In the end I just bought a decent Philips TV with a good panel and 'Android TV' and chose to never connect it to WiFi and activate that (run it in dumb mode.)

It had enough HDMI ports to hook up everything I want and was the best option available. Would I have preferred a 'dumb screen' with a bunch of HDMI ports and no TV tuner at all? Yes.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#654

Post by x3n0ph3n3 »

theshrike79 wrote: post #318
ezst wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> This. Why would you even connect TV to the network? I happen to have a NAS with family pictures I like to display. I can (and do) firewall that thing, but then you hit other issues like the apps you need to show pictures and movies in the first place not to install/run. I've yet to hear of a reasonable recipe to isolate and secure such connected TVs. And don't get me started on Chromecast or other Android dongles,…

Apple TV is the best one. No ads, full OS updates for a long time.

Those aren't exactly cheap.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#655

Post by anon7000 »

boelboel wrote: post #444
Anoian wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Respect for the consumer has long been gone generally except for a few brands. I am still wondering why consumer respecting brands are not emerging more and thriving.

The bottom of the line TVs are basically commoditized and are sold at a loss. There's few tv manufacturers and they mostly compete on price, only the top of the line models have pricing power and only for 6-24 months for new models. A supermajority of consumers don't care if they're tracked all the time and a large fraction don't mind ads everywhere either (they're used to it). A new display plant costs multiple bill…

> A new display plant costs multiple billions

To be fair, most TVs on the market are buying panels from the same few manufacturers. For example, Hisense sources panels from part of LG. I think Samsung is another manufacturer.

So a new company could theoretically access these panels to make a privacy friendly TV without as much capital.

But like you say, it wouldn’t be able to compete on price, because the ad tech lets other companies sell at a loss.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#656

Post by claaams »

bjt wrote: post #627
empyrrhicist wrote: post #604

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can that kind of clause really be enforceable? It really doesn't seem legal in any jurisdiction I'm aware of. (not a lawyer)

These (and other TOS agreements) fall under the category of "adhesion contracts". Because the buyer has no real ability to negotiate, any ambiguity is resolved in their favor. A judge can also strike provisions that a reasonable buyer would not expect, or that are unconscionable. So it's up to the judge's judgment. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/adhesion-contract.asp

The cool thing is that they make you go into forced arbitration rather than through the legal system.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#657

Post by FireBeyond »

boelboel wrote: post #444
Anoian wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Respect for the consumer has long been gone generally except for a few brands. I am still wondering why consumer respecting brands are not emerging more and thriving.

The bottom of the line TVs are basically commoditized and are sold at a loss. There's few tv manufacturers and they mostly compete on price, only the top of the line models have pricing power and only for 6-24 months for new models. A supermajority of consumers don't care if they're tracked all the time and a large fraction don't mind ads everywhere either (they're used to it). A new display plant costs multiple bill…

> only the top of the line models have pricing power

And they still do it anyway because why wouldn't they? My $4K+ TV still wants all sorts of "personalized viewing experience" access.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#658

Post by FireBeyond »

switchbak wrote: post #480
scoot wrote: post #445

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> you have to use the Latch app to open your apartment door So what happens if you arrive home with a dead phone? And possibly worse, they have a log of when you come and go?

You have a unique code, don't they already have a log of your coming and goings? But I would absolutely not install an app for that.

They do. But the apartment complex gets a nice little kickback, especially since an app for unlocking your front door is one that has at least a plausible argument for having your location, which means a whole bunch of location data that can be mined/sold/both.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#659

Post by gambiting »

vachina wrote: post #214
rickdeckard wrote: post #213

Watching the actual investigation video the article is based on, it turns out that alot of the statements in the article don't really hold up to closer scrutiny. I couldn't find any "smoking gun" or discovery of malicious intent. What's left in the end is the already-known fact in the tech-community: The most-common, most-vulnerable and most-equipped device to spy on you in your home is your Smart-TV. 1. It has all t…

Reads like a smear campaign in my opinion. Watch for new American product launches in the next few days.

Tbf, maybe I wouldn't call it a smear campaign, but every NexusGamer video felt like an angry rant for a while now. It was amusing the first 20 times, now I'm kinda fed up with it.

Re: 216M Spy TVs – The LG Smart TV Problem [video]

#660

Post by gambiting »

holowoodman wrote: post #332
nnevatie wrote: post #310

It's unfortunate LG screens are still the best in image quality, even though competition is getting closer. That said, the best way to use LG TVs is to immediately disconnect them from the internet and use an Apple TV 4K for streaming applications.

"Disconnect" is not enough. They will seek out open WiFi and other available LG TVs as relays. You need to remove the WiFi card or at least the antenna.

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