LG has responded to growing privacy concerns surrounding its smart televisions following allegations that the devices may collect detailed household data. The company’s lengthy statement seeks to deny claims of covert listening and data collection, amid ongoing debate about smart TV security and transparency.
LG has moved to quell a growing privacy row over its smart televisions after a lengthy investigation by the YouTube channel Gamers Nexus alleged that the sets could capture private speech and gather detailed information about households. In a statement running to around 2,000 words, the company rejected the central accusation that its televisions continuously record or transmit conversations, saying voice processing only starts when a user activates a supported wake-word function or presses the voice button on the remote.
The dispute centres on how LG’s voice and data features operate in practice. According to the company, audio is processed locally on the television until a wake word is detected, and if no trigger is recognised, the sound is neither converted into text nor stored or sent onwards. LG also said that any voice-recognition logs relate to specific interactions rather than background listening. The firm additionally stressed that automatic content recognition, the system that can identify what is being watched for recommendation or advertising purposes, is optional and not enabled by default.
Gamers Nexus, working with Level1 Techs and independent security researchers, had argued that LG sets could go far further than most users would expect, including by logging IP addresses, location information and details of nearby Wi-Fi networks and connected devices. A separate report by Tom’s Hardware said the investigation claimed that hundreds of millions of LG televisions could be involved, while noting that those allegations had not been independently verified. LG has accepted that its televisions can scan local networks, but said that this is a standard feature in connected devices rather than evidence of covert surveillance.
The company’s defence has not settled the argument. Gamers Nexus has replied that LG’s explanation is internally inconsistent and does not adequately address the evidence presented in the original video. Tom’s Guide reported that critics remain unconvinced by the company’s assurances, arguing that the response leaves significant questions unanswered about transparency, consent and the use of collected data. The row has revived wider concerns about how much information smart TVs gather in the background, particularly at a time when manufacturers increasingly rely on advertising and recommendation systems to monetise their hardware.
LG’s own statement also underlined a broader point that the company said applies to all connected products: no device is entirely immune from security flaws. That caveat may be uncontroversial, but it also means some of the more serious scenarios raised by the investigation would depend on a malicious actor gaining control of the television. For consumers, the episode is likely to sharpen scrutiny of privacy settings, feature defaults and the extent to which smart TV functions remain necessary for basic viewing.
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