609
LG TVs and monitors said to surveil users and install bloatware without asking
(www.notebookcheck.net)
Straight to the list of things "I will never buy in my life".
this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2026
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I wish we would stop using smart to describe surveillance technology. Smart sounds nicez but there's nothing smart about it...
Does anyone make dumb TVs anymore? Seems like there's a sizable market for it. I haven't had a TV in 6 years and want one for local channels, but I really don't want a smart TV.
just get a smart one and never connect it online
They still access and provide a route through your wifi.
What? How would they do that if they are never connected to WiFi in the first place?
I just never gave my smart TV network info. It’s at the factory settings and can’t connect to anything. If there isn’t a console connected to it then it is useless. Just like the good ole days.
They still have ways to connect, though they're lower bandwidth and less reliable.
There is, its called industrial tv "iiyama" for example is a brand of those
Article won't load if you block ads.
Yep. Do they really expect me to figure out which of the half million ad-sites my pihole is blocking so I can read the article?
good.gif
I just never gave my smart tv network info.
I’ve had a “smart” TV for about 4 years. It keeps asking to update the firmware.
No. Effin’. Way.
It’s just going to install more and more spyware, bloatware, and find a way to charge me for something I didn’t have to pay for before.
And thus vulnerabilities are introduced. Either by not updating the FW, or by updating the FW.
Lol, "monitor" app, because it monitors users.
Im sorry. Im drunk.
This is because as soon as a monitor is connected to a Windows computer, it automatically installs both the LG Monitor App Installer and McAfee Scam Detector without ever asking the user for permission.
Is this not a felony under U.S. law? Computer hacking has HUGE criminal liability.
Another win for Linux
The more I learn about windows the more I wish I would've ditched it a long time ago instead of last month...
Name something you do as a corporation to avoid any laws or accountability with the current administration
BRIBE THE DOJ
let's see if that answer's on the board..survey says...!
DING
It's actually windows doing it
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My wife and I bought a TV on the internet. What brand? I have no idea but it's the type they have in waiting rooms and restaurants. Zero internet. Zero apps. You push the button and it turns on. It's the best fucking purchase we've made in the last five years.
I recently purchased a current year TCL, I don't remember the model number but it's the one right under their flagship.
It's 75" and is the most beautiful tv I've owned. Fast, almost OLED levels of dimming, I'm in awe when watching the right content.
I'd pay an extra $500 for a version with no smart capabilities. Let me turn it on and boot into my android box, or console, or whatever.
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I have an LG TV that has never been exposed to the internet and it's amazing.
This is it. Skip all the setup screens and just use it
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I've used an LG monitor for about 5 years, and never install the manufacturer's software unless it looks genuinely useful. When I saw the Gamers Nexus video I went to check my installed apps, and sure enough there was LG's monitor app, installed silently without my knowledge. I used Bulk Crap Uninstaller to get rid of it.
To prevent this kind of thing in future, run gpedit.msc and enable “Prevent automatic download of applications associated with device metadata” under Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → System → Device Installation.
Or you could just change to an os that doesnt piss on its users constantly
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Not only that but my old LG smart TV (47LM8600, I think manufactured in 2012) has literal suicide timers in its built in apps. Mine has never been connected to any network and yet it mysteriously informed me after approximately three years of ownership that all of its player apps such as Youtube, Hulu, Netflix, etc. would stop working because they were "no longer supported," all of them within the time frame of the same couple of weeks. It knew this somehow, apparently via magic, or quantum fluctuations, or psychic brain waves. Without internet connectivity.
Obviously I don't use any of those features so I didn't give a rat's ass and I still don't. But I still find that deeply suspicious.
The only technical explanation that’s not malice would be that some certificate store on the device had expiring certificates and would need an update to continue to function (or rather connect to remote servers).
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Bought a LG TV and a Monitor three years ago. Last time I will do that. Really happy about my decision not to let the TV have access to the internet.
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