Is your LG smart TV watching you? Company rubbishes claims made by Gamers Nexus

Is your smart TV, in association with your smartphone and other connected devices, eavesdropping? A new investigation into LG smart TVs has raised questions over how much information the televisions can collect from a household. Researchers apparently found the TVs scanning local networks, identifying connected devices and, in testing, capturing microphone audio even when the screen appeared to be switched off, it was reported. The company, however, has refuted the claims.

The investigation was conducted by Gamers Nexus in collaboration with Level1Techs and independent security researchers. The team tested retail LG OLED televisions, including the LG G5, and used network packet captures through Wireshark, firmware analysis, and other security-testing techniques to examine what the TVs were doing in the background.

One of the findings involved the TV’s network activity. Researchers allegedly found LG TVs scanning the local network for other devices, including smartphones, computers, printers, smartwatches and other connected hardware. The TVs were also found to identify nearby Wi-Fi networks, including their names and signal strengths. Researchers said this information could be used to build a picture of the devices present in a household.

The investigation also examined LG’s Automatic Content Recognition, or ACR, technology. ACR is a system used by smart TVs to recognise what is being displayed on the screen. It can create a digital fingerprint of programmes, advertisements and other content and use that information for recommendations, services and advertising.

Researchers allegedly found that LG’s ACR system can operate across content sources, including external inputs such as HDMI, rather than being limited to content played through the TV’s own apps. The investigation examined how ACR data, advertising identifiers and information about other devices on the same network can be combined to build a more detailed picture of a household’s viewing and connected-device environment.

Can an LG TV listen when the screen is off?

Researchers apparently demonstrated that a tested LG television could capture microphone audio while the screen appeared to be powered down and the TV was in standby. They then disconnected the television’s internet connection and found that audio data could continue to be stored locally. When network connectivity was restored, the stored data could be transmitted.

However, this does not mean that every LG television is routinely recording conversations whenever it is switched off. The researchers demonstrated the behaviour in the context of a compromised television and reported security vulnerabilities that could potentially allow an attacker to gain access to the TV’s microphone and other functions, according to reports. The full technical details of some of those vulnerabilities have not been publicly disclosed because of the ongoing responsible-disclosure process.

The researchers also reported remote-code-execution vulnerabilities in webOS. If successfully exploited, such vulnerabilities could potentially allow an attacker to take control of the television, access its microphone and use the TV as a foothold to interact with other devices on the same home network.

LG, however, has rejected the central claim that its TVs routinely record ambient conversations.

LG denies recording ambient conversations

In a statement, LG said, “The claims made in the recently published video are not true. LG TVs process voice data only when the voice button on the remote control is pressed and held, or when a wake word such as ‘Hi LG’ is recognised after the user has activated the Far-Field voice recognition feature. Other than these instances, the TVs do not collect or record ambient conversations. (If the wake word is not recognised, no voice data is transmitted to the server; the audio processing for wake word detection is performed locally on the device and is immediately deleted.)”

LG also addressed the network-scanning findings, saying that the ability of its televisions to identify and connect to devices on the same network is a standard smart TV function.

“Additionally, to provide smart TV functionalities, LG TVs feature the ability to scan for and connect to nearby devices on the same network. This is a standard function commonly provided by smart TVs and smart home devices,” the company said.

What is ACR?

ACR, or Automatic Content Recognition, is essentially a content-identification technology built into smart TVs. It analyses what is being displayed or played on the television and creates a digital fingerprint that can be matched against a database to identify programmes, advertisements and other content.

This can allow TV manufacturers and their advertising businesses to understand viewing behaviour and provide recommendations, services or targeted advertising. ACR can also work with content coming through external sources such as HDMI, depending on how it is implemented.

LG said its ACR feature is opt-in. “The ACR (Automatic Content Recognition) feature is provided on an opt-in basis to deliver personalised content recommendations, services, and advertisements. If a user does not consent to the applicable optional agreement, ACR data is not used for advertising purposes,” LG said.