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Researchers from the US Northeastern University and Imperial College London have found that smart TVs from Samsung, LG and Amazon send location data and IP addresses of users to third-party companies, even while in standby mode, writes the Financial Times. In addition to Samsung and LG, brands such as Roku and Amazon Fire TV appear in the researchers' report. Data is sent most often to Google, Facebook, Amazon and Netflix.
Moreover, the data is sent regardless of whether the user has a Netflix account. The researchers also found that other smart devices, such as speakers and cameras, also send user data to dozens of third-party developers, including Spotify and Microsoft. In addition, the study says that Smart TVs use content recognition technology that tracks everything that users watch and receives a huge amount of data for statistical processing.
In most cases, it is about three things: smart TVs send data about location, IP addresses and the time at which the device was used. The latter fact clearly hints that advertisers have been able to see when a user is at home and when not.
However, most of the data turned out to be encrypted and scientists could not figure out what else Smart TVs send about their owners.
In response to a request from the media, Netflix and Facebook said that they need the sent data solely to adjust the display of these services on smart TV screens and other technical nuances. Google said it uses the data to measure ad performance, which helps target ads to app creators on Smart TVs.
The oversight of how smart devices manage user data is weak and worth strengthening, experts say. We are already used to collecting data from smartphones, but the fact that TVs do it right from home is really alarming.
Moreover, the data is sent regardless of whether the user has a Netflix account. The researchers also found that other smart devices, such as speakers and cameras, also send user data to dozens of third-party developers, including Spotify and Microsoft. In addition, the study says that Smart TVs use content recognition technology that tracks everything that users watch and receives a huge amount of data for statistical processing.
In most cases, it is about three things: smart TVs send data about location, IP addresses and the time at which the device was used. The latter fact clearly hints that advertisers have been able to see when a user is at home and when not.
However, most of the data turned out to be encrypted and scientists could not figure out what else Smart TVs send about their owners.
In response to a request from the media, Netflix and Facebook said that they need the sent data solely to adjust the display of these services on smart TV screens and other technical nuances. Google said it uses the data to measure ad performance, which helps target ads to app creators on Smart TVs.
The oversight of how smart devices manage user data is weak and worth strengthening, experts say. We are already used to collecting data from smartphones, but the fact that TVs do it right from home is really alarming.
