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LG monitors silently install software through Windows Update without consent

• deleted 3mo ago
  [deleted]
• bnfcl 3mo ago
  The enshittification just keeps getting worse, where will it end?
• Kelteseth 3mo ago
  Can confirm. This happened to me yesterday on my Windows 11 machine. Uninstallation was only listed in the Microsoft Store -> Library.
• boomskats 3mo ago
  Not great, but also not at all surprising. Not sure about other solutions, but one suggested workaround here would be to silently uninstall Windows without consent.
• justsomehnguy 3mo ago
  And Razer, Logitech, nvidia and everyone else who has it's driver package accepted into WU. No, you can't have a "(o) just the driver" checkbox because... honestly there are a lot of reasons and the device manufacturers are the guys who demand that in the first place.
  • maccard 3mo ago
    With the quality of that software, it wouldn’t surprise me if the driver didn’t work without the userspace app at all. The GeForce experience at least you can disable, but if you have any branded components getting all of their management software off your PC is incredibly difficult
    • justsomehnguy 3mo ago
      Logitech M720 Triathlon is currently listed €64,99 at their site. The "programmable buttons" on it works through the user space app which is needs to be running in order to intercept and replace the button actions. No app running? No replace. App is stalling because the CPU was busy? No replace. (EDIT: or no action at all, lol) Is €65 mouse could store the less than a 1 kilobyte of the settings on itself? Of course not. On a third day I just turned it off and went for the other vendor altogether. To add an insult to an injury I knew the software would be mess so I installed it on a notebook relegated for the 2nd line duties. Less than a year later the notebook started to cry what there is no space left on the disk - which was quite strange because there was nothing what would fill up quite a plenty of a free space. Well, every month or two the Logi software (which I no longer even used because I didn't use the mouse) downloaded ~1GB update, stored the update, installed the update. Never cleaning up nor the updates nor the previous versions. Tens of GBs of a useless software just for the sake of the process.
      • Georgelemental 3mo ago
        I am very happy with my Triathlon, but I use the 3rd-party Linux software Solaar https://github.com/pwr-Solaar/Solaar https://github.com/pwr-Solaar/Solaar
        • sys_64738 3mo ago
          This is a wonderful app for pairing. No Logitech spyware needed!
      • maccard 3mo ago
        The logitech software is absolutely awful. All of the functionality is on device, but you can manage it with https://logiwebconnect.com/ https://logiwebconnect.com/ instead. I’ve used Logitech mice as my daily driver for years with this.
  • mbrndtgn 3mo ago
    Razer mice are the worst because they are just HIDs and could work without any special driver at all! Also I don't need their whole suite on every Windows computer I plug my mouse in. I think most people would just configure their Razer mouse on one PC, save the settings in the firmware of the mouse itself (I guess, I've actually never used their driver suite) and then never touch their software again. It's just crazy to me that a lot of keyboard manufacturers have basically standardized on VIA as their firmware which can be configured via WebUSB without installing any additional driver. But my mouse somehow needs a gigantic driver suite just to configure and save some settings? It's just madness. I like Razer mice and their headsets, but I will never install any of their drivers. Ironically I feel more comfortable using Razer hardware on non-Windows devices than on Windows precisely because they don't support other operating systems.
  • zahlman 3mo ago
    …Do these devices just not work on Linux or something?
    • justsomehnguy 3mo ago
      Depends on what you are calling 'working'. Basic drivers prove a basic functionality.
  • sys_64738 3mo ago
    I avoid installing Logitech spyware on my Mac but there are FLOSS apps to do the equivalent. There's even a pairing FLOSS app for Linux to avoid installing Logitech spyware. FLOSS is amazing. LinearMouse is the Mac app.
• thejokeisonme 3mo ago
  Your OS silently installs malware. Doesn't get much worse than this.
  • deleted 3mo ago
    [deleted]
  • inigyou 3mo ago
    Your OS is malware, if it's Windows.
    • timpera 3mo ago
      Windows may not be the best OS for you but it definitely isn't malware.
      • garciansmith 3mo ago
        If Windows continually supports third parties installing malware (without your consent and through Windows update, not some third party updater), at what point can the OS itself be considered malware?
        • frollogaston 3mo ago
          The OS itself already does way worse things than what this LG adware does.
      • inigyou 3mo ago
        What is the evidence that Windows isn't malware?
      • globular-toast 3mo ago
        Windows today would have been considered malware in the 90s. This frog hasn't been boiled.
      • account42 3mo ago
        Windows 11 already managed the installation without consent part for many users.
• delta_p_delta_x 3mo ago
  Workaround: gpedit.msc Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Device Installation Prevent automatic download of applications associated with device metadata Set to enabled OK On home editions sans gpedit.msc: sysdm.cpl Hardware tab Click Device Installation Settings Under 'Do you want to automatically download manufacturers' apps for your devices?', select 'No' Save Changes
  • Someone1234 3mo ago
    Worth noting that gpedit.msc isn't included in Windows Home editions (although there are unsupported ways of adding it). This is also technically asking a lot for working around issues that shouldn't exist. Microsoft needs to intervene here, this cannot be a normal expectation for using their product.
    • delta_p_delta_x 3mo ago
      Edited with another method.
      • fuzzfactor 3mo ago
        Also found in the GUI: System > About > Advanced System Settings link > Hardware tab > Device installation settings Do you want to automatically download manufacturers' apps for your devices? set to No The default setting has been "Yes" for a very long time but most monitors over the years have simply used the default plug-and-play Windows monitor driver instead of installing their own. Triggering no additional downloads for the life of most computers. It just so happens that monitor manufacturers better adhered to the Microsoft guidelines for hardware compatibility earlier and more adequately than most devices. This might very well have been a reliability tactic since graphics drivers were still quite a moving-target shitshow, which in some ways is still ongoing. So people have mostly never gotten accustomed to monitor drivers having any consideration at all, while drivers for graphics themselves and other new hardware has often had some associated downloads that people have become familiar dealing with. Looks like LG finally took this long-standing opportunity to do some deeper enshittification than previously imagined. Simply taking advantage of a domino effect that has been lurking for decades. A couple other related gpedit options if you don't even want the drivers themselves to change after you have gotten them correctly installed: gpedit.msc Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Internet Communication Management > Internet Communication settings Turn off Windows Update device driver searching Set to enabled OK gpedit.msc Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage updates offered from Windows Update > Do not include drivers with Windows Update Set to enabled OK
• kingleopold 3mo ago
  They used to call this spyware/malware. Now it's a regular practice by eng. teams and managers inside these big corp. Well played guys :) Congrats with new type of tricks
  • flowerbreeze 3mo ago
    From FTC website: Malware is harmful software that’s installed on your device without your knowledge. So I think that is what we should continue to call it. LG monitors are installing malware, because they install the software silently and it harms the system by making it slower and disrupting the work of the user with advertisements.
  • delusional 3mo ago
    I would be very surprised if some random manager of some low level engineering team made this decision. It seems more likely this was a marketing or partner relations department idea that was presented to high level leadership. I don't understand why we expect some manager somewhere to stop stuff like this.
  • sys_64738 3mo ago
    If it's not malware then what is it called today?
    • supertrope 3mo ago
      "Telemetry." "Personalized experiences." Basically doublespeak.
    • Gigachad 3mo ago
      It's still malware, just anyone still left on Windows is accustomed to it now.
  • someothherguyy 3mo ago
    I mean, nothing new there. (Mal/Ad/Spy)ware just has been more prevalent in the browser and on mobile apps the last ~15yrs instead of being installed via modified windows installers.
• BoingBoomTschak 3mo ago
  [Laughs in Linux/BSD]
  • potato-peeler 3mo ago
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fbt1fVfi-g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fbt1fVfi-g
  • throwa356262 3mo ago
    HN doesn't like your tone and you are being down voted. But in general you are correct, Linux and bsd users are less affected by such shenanigans. Short personal story: I had a win10 machine were HP kept installing some "analytics" service. This happened even on a clean windows install so I guess they used the same delivery mechanism LG is using here. After having read the HP ToS (where they basically gave themselves unlimited rights to monitor anything I did on that machine), I decided to wipe the disk and install Linux. But I guess it is just a matter of time before EU or US make spywares mandatory on Linux too. Chat control and age verification seems to be the first step towards that.
    • microtonal 3mo ago
      But in general you are correct, Linux and bsd users are less affected by such shenanigans. Mac users too (at least for now).
  • tialaramex 3mo ago
    I don't know about the BSDs but in Linux the reason is that a volunteer (in principle it could be a paid employee, I guess maybe it is for RHEL etc?) decides what gets installed It is absolutely possible that when you plug in an LG display it installs and runs software on your Linux system†, just that rather than "Somebody at LG who earned a bonus" the decision maker was Sara in Portugal who fat fingered a change when trying to make a Python script for a PCI digital TV receiver work properly on 32-bit. It does feel more like an amusing mistake in that case whereas even if LG tells us it's a mistake we know it was to earn $$$. † Obviously YMMV but such "plug and play" features are commonplace because they're useful
• anonym29 3mo ago
  If you're using Windows on a personal device in the first place, you're pretty loudly declaring that your consent doesn't matter anyway. That's not your computer, that's Microsoft's computer. You're the threat model they lock it down against, you're the schmuck that keeps them fed, and you're the possible terrorist/hacker to be surveilled, tagged, tracked, and monitored. If you care about consent as it relates to your use of technology, you shouldn't be using Windows in the first place, and this has been obvious for well over a decade now.
• discordance 3mo ago
  McAfee should be classified as a virus
  • BatteryMountain 3mo ago
    10 Years ago. Complete garbage spyware.
  • chrismorgan 3mo ago
    When preinstalled (as multiple major OEMs do), or when bundled in unrelated installers in these sorts of ways, it matches the definitions of scam excellently, and protection racket not badly. When you uninstall, they give you an opportunity to type a reason. I wonder if anyone actually reads my accusations of them being scammers and bad people. I have uninstalled McAfee from more people’s computers than I care to remember.
    • fragmede 3mo ago
      How exactly does it match the definition of a scam? Windows does get viruses, and it does protect against them. It's not something you actually need, like most consumer VPNs, but they have high pressure sales tactics to trick people into buying it, but they do deliver what is promised, which makes it not a scam. They are creating artificial demand with their scare mongering, and I tell everyone I know not to get it, and to enable Windows Defender, but that's still not a scam.
      • supertrope 3mo ago
        It depends on your definition of scam. Is McAfee a total fraud, not delivering on its core functionality of anti-virus scanning? No. But it's selling something most people don't need and uses information asymmetry, fear, and dark patterns to make money. Microsoft Defender has solved the anti-virus problem. (It doesn't solve the computer security problem but that's out of scope of AV). To play devil's advocate, without bundled bloatware PCs might cost $10 more.
      • chrismorgan 3mo ago
• Hikikomori 3mo ago
  Last 2 were LG, been looking at a new one but I guess I'll go with another brand that has their panels.
• dhash 3mo ago
  it's worth noting that the price of these monitors got cut in half due to this news -- great for the linux users out there
  • sigio 3mo ago
    Still seeing them for ~600 everywhere, which is completely in line with historic pricing: https://tweakers.net/pricewatch/2246090/lg-ultragear-oled-34gx900a-b-zwart.html https://tweakers.net/pricewatch/2246090/lg-ultragear-oled-34...
    • encrypted_bird 3mo ago
      Jesus Christ, $600 for a monitor?
  • Gualdrapo 3mo ago
    I don't feel like spending my money on some horrible corpo pulling out stuff like this, even if I've been using linux since 2006. Who can tell if they will do this to other OS in the future?
    • leni536 3mo ago
      This is probably Windows pulling LG software through Windows Update bases in EDID. Linux won't ever do this BS.
      • delusional 3mo ago
        I wouldn't be so categorical. This isn't really a kernel concern, and I could completely believe that there are some distros out there that pull in random packages based on hardware detection. The saving grace of linux currently is that volunteers package most of the software, and they don't generally package malware. There is no structural guarantee there, and if we invite corporate interests to package at some point (like flatpack and snap wants to) this is 100% going to happen eventually.
      • 3mo ago
• sigio 3mo ago
  Why do people even install 'drivers' for things like monitors. (Or usb devices running 'standard' protocols). The OS handles these just fine by itself.
  • embedding-shape 3mo ago
    Sounds like this malware gets installed even if you don't manually install anything. > Connecting some LG monitors to a Windows PC may automatically install software that promotes McAfee subscriptions I too have a LG monitor, but haven't booted Windows in some days, guess I'll stay put in my Arch environment until they've fixed this shitshow.
    • onaclov2000 3mo ago
      But this assumes you plug in USBC .... Right? HDMI and display port can't....install over right?
      • embedding-shape 3mo ago
        I don't see any details in any of the texts I came across, but in theory the implementation could be that Windows sees the ID of the monitor once connected through any sort of connection, then when matching ID is found it installs the malware. Rather than the installer is sent from the monitor to the computer. Would make updates a lot easier, and if they really want to spread this malware, can activate it for a lot more monitors.
        • jdw64 3mo ago
          Most commercial solutions are Windows-based and use the Windows API. HDMI and DP also have two-way communication channels. This is something you learn when you do hardware coding.(Of course you already know this, but this is for the other people reading this comment.) Typically, the Windows update server downloads packages mapped to hardware IDs in the background. Since LG's business in Korea has been failing and their AI efforts are stagnating, they exploited their McAfee partnership marketing as a pipeline. Windows' Plug and Play does make development convenient. The DX experience is good. Linux is quite fragmented. That's good from a 'my computer' perspective, but not from a 'product' perspective. And then there's the jitter issue. Windows has stable paid solutions, while Linux has version discrepancies. In fact, the reason Linux is considered secure is simply because hardware vendors haven't standardized enough to build automatic deployment pipelines. In programming terms, we all know singleton is bad, but for Plug and Play, it's overwhelmingly convenient.
• GaProgMan 3mo ago
  Gamers Nexus have a video about this. Definitely worth a watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9uefFYe6bM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9uefFYe6bM
  • embedding-shape 3mo ago
    I'm wondering if we in Europe gets vastly different experience compared to Americans or elsewhere in the world. People complain about LG having ads everywhere in the monitors, displays and what not, but none of our LG products (bought and used in Spain) have any ads anywhere. I'm sitting here with a LG monitor and our main TV is a LG OLED TV, neither of them have ads anywhere, although I haven't booted Windows in a couple of days and I guess I won't, until this malware issue been fixed. But still, is it possible Americans are receiving more ads than in other parts of the world? Certainly online sentiment gives me that impression.
    • 15155 3mo ago
      > Americans are receiving more ads than in other parts of the world Ads aren't free, so yes, it would stand to reason that people in the largest consumer market in the world might garner more ad spend.
      • embedding-shape 3mo ago
        So because the US is the largest consumer market in the world, the TVs LG sell in the US has more ads in the UIs than TVs sold in Europe? Why would it be like that? If that theory is true, does that mean TVs sold in the European Union then have more ads than TVs sold in China, as the EU consumer market is larger than the China one?
        • 15155 3mo ago
          > Why would it be like that? Ads aren't free - this isn't a "theory," it's basic economics. Cost can be political (you cause the entire EU government to outlaw the practice) or monetary. > If that theory is true, does that mean TVs sold in the European Union then have more ads than TVs sold in China Probably? The markets have little overlap, but again, this is a function of cost. Where people have more money to spend, I have more money to spend on ads, or more money to spend on campaigning to be allowed to show ads.
• devttyeu 3mo ago
  This is so much worse that the title makes it out to be: 1. Your OS installs malware (technically manufacturers software) from a 3rd party vendor in background, zero user interaction 2. Happens as soon as you or anyone with physical access plug in a device into the HDMI port 3. That malware has internet and full system access, no sandboxing 4. It starts with every system boot 5. This software gets installed when you plug in a new LG monitor 6. OR ALREADY HAD AN OLDER LG MONITOR PLUGGED IN, BECAUSE LG APPARENTLY ROLLED THIS OUT FOR MANY OLDER MODELS TOO!! 7. And yes, if you think that's horrendous, as mentioned in the video below, that also applies to 'Professional' LG monitors! This situation has.. no precedent as far as I can tell.. GamersNexus has a video diving deeper into what LG did here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9uefFYe6bM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9uefFYe6bM
  • herbst 3mo ago
    As if the world needs more reasons to understand that windows is activly making your life worse. Step by step.
  • embedding-shape 3mo ago
    > This situation has.. no precedent as far as I can tell.. Microsoft has been allowing this sort of ludicrous behavior for decades at this point, it's not a new issue. What's new is how visible LG made their malware, compared to previous auto-installs that happen like this, where they try to make the thing not so in your face, as they know there will be a huge backlash. I don't know what Microsoft is thinking even allowing and enabling this sort of thing, they've lost all touch when it comes to building things for users.
    • MichaelZuo 3mo ago
      Maybe some decision makers do indeed have negative aspirations…
    • joe_mamba 3mo ago
      >I don't know what Microsoft is thinking even allowing and enabling this sort of thing This has been a feature since Windows 7, and it worked great since it would pull all necessary drivers after installation without you going hunting on the internet like in the Windows XP days. Just that no HW manufacturer thought to push spyware in their driver repos at that point to improve some team's KPIs.
• jdw64 3mo ago
  In Korea, pretty much all devices come with Windows. It's hard to live outside of Windows. Most programming is done in CPP,C#, and even when people use C, the majority are working on top of an IDE. The OS kernel layer only really appears in things like Samsung phones—the vast majority of work is on the application layer, and most consumers are on Windows on their desktops. It seems unavoidable
  • inigyou 3mo ago
    This is also true outside of Korea.
• astonex 3mo ago
  Shame on Microsoft for allowing this
• throwa356262 3mo ago
  Last time a company abused platform driver delivery to install adware, Microsoft threatened to pull their drivers altogether. But those were different times...
• luciana1u 3mo ago
  [flagged]
  • supriyo-biswas 3mo ago
    We had autorun.inf in the past installing automatically from any random USB drive[1]. The fun days where you always feared contracting malware if you so happened to plug a random USB drive in :) [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autorun.inf https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autorun.inf
    • Grom_PE 3mo ago
      And some USB drives pretended to also be a CD-ROM to circumvent the limitation of autorun.inf not executing on removable media. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U3_(software) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U3_(software)
• inigyou 3mo ago
  They also come with terms of service which assert that you will inform everyone in the vicinity of your TV that their voices are being recorded by your TV.
• tialaramex 3mo ago
  Assuming they don't get a revenue cut, pushing back on Microsoft can in principle be effective here. Microsoft decides what happens here, and presumably today they just take it on trust that hardware makers know what software to install. New driver? Sure. McSpam installer? OK. Maybe they have a guideline saying "Don't ship unrelated garbage" but today it's not enforced because why would you do that? If the Microsoft customers (particularly larger corporate customers) tell Microsoft they hate this that policy will get tightened or if there isn't a policy one is introduced, and outfits like LG get told if you do this again we're taking away your update privileges, 'cos our customers hated this. Because (as I said assuming MS don't get a taste) this is all downside for Microsoft. Pushing back on LG will be less likely to work because you already bought their product, so at most you can insist you'll forgo LG next iteration and they know such pledges evaporate in practice usually. Whereas Microsoft has contract negotiations every day, somewhere a $$$ contract is being renegotiated next week and if "Yeah, these LG popups suck" comes up - even if it's not a corporate system but the VP's niece's video editing suite for her vlog that's strictly unrelated - that Microsoft sales droid reports this was an impediment and it's on the list of things that don't benefit Microsoft.
  • raverbashing 3mo ago
    Honestly yeah MS should get all the flack (which is mostly deserved) of this Manufacturer does whatever crap they want with "it works" and then MS gets the complaints A driver should only be that. A driver
    • rbanffy 3mo ago
      > A driver should only be that. A driver I still remember the massive amounts of crapware installed with video cards, printers (hello, HP), and just about anything where the manufacturer can squeeze some money from.
      • al_borland 3mo ago
        This was always one of my biggest pet peeves on Windows. A bunch of junk running in the system tray just for basic hardware functionality.
• throawayonthe 3mo ago
  ? isn't this normal windows behaviour?
  • bravo777 3mo ago
    I agree, this isn't news, just flame bait to smoke out the lurking FOSS enthusiasts on a Saturday morning.
• motbus3 3mo ago
  I am tired of this. LG is now on my blacklist alongside EA and Blizzard Entertainment for their anti consumer practices. I can't change them, I can't change policies about it. I can choose to not buy.
  • delusional 3mo ago
    > Blizzard Entertainment You mean "Microsoft Xbox Activision Blizzard King Bethesda Mojang"? I wish you luck with your boycott.
    • BatteryMountain 3mo ago
      I've successfully avoided these companies the last 5 years. Gaming as a whole is dead for me, I just play a couple of old games now & then. The culture is toast too, not just bad games or expensive hardware. So not really losing much sleep over any of this. I have linux on all my machines, so I really only play the one's that perform well on linux. Haven't played online multiplayer games since ~2013. Many of us are like me. edit: like if a game doesn't work, I no longer spend hours trying to fix it, I don't go ranting on the internet about it.. I just uninstall and play something else. Really simplifies things if you can detach from gaming as a core identity anchor.
      • lloydatkinson 3mo ago
        I'm still angry at how they ruined Overwatch
        • motbus3 3mo ago
          You mean how the stole the product you bought?
          • lloydatkinson 3mo ago
            I suppose so?
      • 3mo ago
• motbus3 3mo ago
  I think this is how they are going to make us pay rent for what we bought. They will make everything unusable unless you pay more and make some cuckoo TOS saying that you agree to be held in contempt if you circumvent their measurements. Honestly, if we don't push it back hard, it will only get worse and worse. Why we were cancelling people if they used wrong pronouns and suddenly we got tired of doing the same with stuff that we all should agree on that is terrible.
• qmr 3mo ago
  Beyond tired of the rape mentality from Microsoft and other evil mega corp's. Remember when you used to own your "personal" computer?
• rbanffy 3mo ago
  At this point, such shenanigans are to be expected when using Windows. I guess my next machine will have a VGA port ;-) And no Windows.
  • classified 3mo ago
    As long as you don't need some Windows-only software, Linux is a viable alternative now. KDE Plasma is a great desktop environment and even most games run flawlessly on Steam. And if you do need Windows occasionally, you can put it into a VM.
    • subscribed 3mo ago
      Eh, kinda. I have new-ish MSI laptop with nvidia and it's still not good enough. I tried on the spare nvme and it just doesn't work well enough with these few games I want. Close but still not there. And Plasma has its own problems (I have it on my work laptop with Fedora).
      • rbanffy 3mo ago
        You have to be very unlucky to find a laptop without Linux support these days. Nvidia’s support towards the Linux developers is better now, but still leaves much to be desired, and gaming, while Steam did an incredible job in making Linux better than Windows for most games, can’t really work miracles if the hardware manufacturer doesn’t care.
        • subscribed 3mo ago
          It does have Linux support, mostly, it's just that the nvidia support is not good enough if someone doesn't want to run Bazzite or Arch (I don't want to).
          • rbanffy 3mo ago
            I tend to avoid Nvidia on my laptops, but AI has made them less and less optional. This whole ecosystem dependency on a single hardware provider that can’t publish a reasonable device driver is not the best possible scenario.
• greatgib 3mo ago
  If you had time to spend, I'm wondering if you couldn't sue LG or Microsoft in some countries for something equivalent of "hacking". Like intrusion in a computer network. As it is unsolicited installation of something that is unexpected. As there is no consequence for them, again there is no reason that it changes or that it doesn't get worse in the future.
• adamtaylor_13 3mo ago
  This is an excellent use of agentic AI, btw. Fire Claude up and say, "Remove LG malware and mcafee from this computer. Make regex changes so it can't be installed again." My current windows 10 install is cleaner than any other windows machine I've ever owned due to using Claude to deep dive and rip stuff out.
  • bcraven 3mo ago
    "Prevent this software having unfettered access to your machine by giving some other software unfettered access to your machine"
    • adamtaylor_13 3mo ago
      That's a hot-take, but yeah. Something like that. Probably more like, "Prevent adversarially installed software from having unfettered access to your machine by giving software you specifically requested unfettered access to your machine." If it makes you feel safer, you can just tell it to give you the commands run them yourself. The point is, I'm not a Windows sysadmin so idk how to do stuff like this--claude does.
      • deleted 3mo ago
        [deleted]
      • deleted 3mo ago
        [deleted]
      • frollogaston 3mo ago
        Yeah it's reasonable to trust Claude more than whatever the heck LG shipped
  • someothherguyy 3mo ago
    > excellent use of agentic AI you run claude code unsanboxed on your machine and give it privileged access?
    • 3mo ago
• atoav 3mo ago
  Good to know. LG is now on my blacklist.
• gkbrk 3mo ago
  A monitor cannot install software on your computer by the way. It's Windows installing this software automatically (for some reason), so the blame should be on Microsoft. Autorun of malware when you plugged in a USB drive was also a Windows issue, I'd classify this as the same security problem.
  • tantalor 3mo ago
    [flagged]
    • mosselman 3mo ago
      You are describing 'the blame should be on Windows'. The consequence of Windows having the blame is that one should not buy it.
      • deleted 3mo ago
        [deleted]
    • grayhatter 3mo ago
      that's funny; because my root cause analysis didn't show the user as the person making the decision to show themselves ads? did yours, or was the victim blaming intentional?
      • k33n 3mo ago
        The word “victim” is honestly pretty funny in this context. Nothing really happened to anyone.
        • gkbrk 3mo ago
          I wouldn't classify getting random malware as "nothing happening".
          • frollogaston 3mo ago
• lapelusa 3mo ago
  LG is not a computer OS developer. Microsoft is. Microsoft has steered from developing software to developing malware for years now. This is simple: LG and McAfee paid MS to DP this, and they did. It still blows my mind that most people still put up with this kind of behavior. I get that some people can't get away from Windows due to genuinely needing to use software that will only run on it, but that has to be around 0.1% or less of current windows users. There is no justification for the other 99.9% to choose to stay in such a toxic relationship.
• tantalor 3mo ago
  Windows is malware
  • lloydatkinson 3mo ago
    That's the second time, probably more, you've been saying this in the thread. Blaming users for "buying" Windows is ridiculous too.
• guesswho_ 3mo ago
  [dead]
• AlienRobot 3mo ago
  I have an LG monitor and I think I managed to avoid this by using Linux.
  • newsoftheday 3mo ago
    Same, also bought an LG TV to replace our aging 2 decade old TV. Nothing says you have to run the TV's setup. Use an external device for streaming, preferably running Linux and you have full control and no Ads or telemetry.
• grayhatter 3mo ago
  So I own 5 LG monitors. But now I can't buy LG. I also refuse to support Samsung. Are there any high quality panel manufacturers left that aren't run huge pieces of shit? Or at least try to respect the people buying their hardware?
  • BoingBoomTschak 3mo ago
    Panel? Not really since Panasonic exited the market. For complete monitors, the sole make I trust is Eizo but they only make professional (business or photography) products these days, and I'm _not_ going back to 60 Hz. Dell doesn't deserve trust but their UltraSharp line usually is "okay" even if my U2724D has uniformity issues near the bottom. Iiyama also remains a good one in my books. But if you want OLED, abandon all hope. The technology is so compromised and the market so monopolized by the collective Market for Lemons style race to the bottom targeting gaymers that I intentionally went for IPS black (yes, LG.display, I know...) instead.
    • grayhatter 3mo ago
      I think Eizo is what I'm looking for, I've never heard of the brand before, so I appreciate the recommendation! Hopefully I can convince myself to buy something slower than 120... I don't mind paying for a bit more for professional gear. In part, because quality is important, but much more important to me is respect.
      • BoingBoomTschak 3mo ago
        Their ColorEdges are definitely very good (I had a CG2730 just before that Dell) but now that my eyes tasted 120 Hz - even if only for page scrolling or the mouse pointer - I simply can't go back.
• dcj4 3mo ago
  windows update is a well known malware vector, how does this warrant any news? if you absolutely have to use windows, you either go through the effort of stripping the particular version you chose from all the spyware and malware it comes packaged with and gut the malware loader paths out of it, or you accept that you're running a botnet node you have little to no control over.
  • bravo777 3mo ago
    this is the only valid, reasonably sound and grounded comment in this entire discussion, bravo.
  • bravo777 3mo ago
    p.s. not being sarcastic
• infinite_spin 3mo ago
  the paranoid part of me thinks this is a war of attrition, where if every company imaginable has to be taken to task for intrusive behavior that we'll eventually grow numb to it, or that with a large enough onslaught we'll never be able to outpace it. It's not like there is profit to be made from preventing this behavior, and incredible incentives to, at minimum, turn a blind eye.
  • cindyllm 3mo ago
    [dead]
• Gud 3mo ago
  Not surprised. My wife CONVINCED me to buy an LG tv instead of my typical dumb monitor. Now I get constant ads and a constant nagging of updates available, that will install more ads and spying features...
  • whalesalad 3mo ago
    LG TV’s are really really good. If you never connect them to the internet. And that rule should be applied to all TV’s. Use an external device like an Apple TV or a self-crafted solution (Roku, Amzn stick, etc all garbage phoning home and listening with Alexa crap) Treat your TV like a computer monitor (ironic here in this context lol)
    • BoingBoomTschak 3mo ago
      Image quality may be good (minus the horrible banding and ABL) but I'd put LG and Samsung in the same bag concerning hardware reliability: don't expect it to last much more than the warranty period and if it does, give some offerings to your lucky star.
      • whalesalad 3mo ago
        In my experience they are both good. I have a 15 year old 1080p Samsung 55” panel that has moved across the country 3 times. It’s in my garage and still works great. My C2 OLED is 5 years old, knock on wood still working great. B5 OLED latest in my fleet it’s only a year old.
  • regexorcist 3mo ago
    I have a pihole in front of my LG TV blocking nearly every DNS query it tries. I only allow a couple streaming apps I do use and see zero ads.
  • CrimsonRain 3mo ago
    Update firmware. Turn off LIVE PLUS block internet for the tv from router Enjoy. That's what I have been doing for years.
• pluralmonad 3mo ago
  A malware OS installing other malware seems fitting.
• regexorcist 3mo ago
  Seriously, why use Windows in 2026? Such a hideous OS and ecosystem with endless malware, backdoors, and dark patterns.
  • gambiting 3mo ago
    IMHO it's the best OS as a games developer, Visual Studio just doesn't have anything remotely close. And all console toolchains are windows only. But genuinely as a C++ dev I much much much prefer it over MacOS or even Linux for work.
    • Grombobulous 3mo ago
      Of course this is a “I need the OS for work” situation. It reminds me a lot of 20 years ago when we’d say things like “I’d love a Mac but it’s not compatible with anything I do for work,” and that sentiment didn’t last. I definitely wouldn’t predict that Linux is taking over the world or anything but it wasn’t that long ago that playing AAA games on Linux on day one of release was ludicrous. Now the most popular PC handheld runs Linux, a PC console launched that runs Linux. Now we have hardware like the MacBook Neo that threatens Windows even more. Sure, the XPS 13 came out and is arguably a compelling alternative. But I think the mindshare damage has been done on that one. The idea that Windows might disappear entirely is not that far-fetched, especially when you look at Microsoft’s financial results. If I was a PC OEM like Dell I would probably band together with other OEMs like Lenovo to make my own Linux distribution and support Windows offboarding even further as a hedge to my business.
      • gambiting 3mo ago
        Yeah for sure. And I wouldn't be surprised if at least Sony and Nintendo released their toolchains for Linux for the next generation. IMHO the big difference is in enterprise Vs personal Windows, enterprise Windows can genuinely be a very lean, fast experience that is great for work. But my personal PC running windows is very firmly in the "I wonder what the latest update will break" teritorry.
    • StumpChunkman 3mo ago
• GuestFAUniverse 3mo ago
  Oh, come on! LG force fed people with ads on TVs. And now everybody acts surprised? Do. Not. Buy. LG. There are a lot of decent alternatives. Stop buying from the sick heads.
  • HighGoldstein 3mo ago
    > Do. Not. Buy. LG. > There are a lot of decent alternatives. Can you name them? Dell and Samsung are the main competitors for displays as far as I'm aware, Dell tends to be hit-or-miss when it comes to monitor features and quality, Samsung's high end displays come preloaded with a whole OS. The monitor market is really in the toilet.
    • petepete 3mo ago
      Samsung are as bad as LG for advertising in their TVs. I'd happily buy and use a Dell monitor in my front room next time around. I don't use the speakers or tuner in my current TV so I'm not sure what I'd be missing out on.
    • internet2000 3mo ago
      Dell is good. Buy the good (not cheap) Dells and you get the good quality with the features that actually matter.
• Havoc 3mo ago
  Why are hardware manufacturers so shit at software? Whether it’s router safety or NVIDIA software hammering DNS servers hundreds of thousands of times or this. Across the board they seem below average competent when it comes to software. I get that they’re specializing on hardware but why so very bad? Edit. This isn’t even the only thread today. See TPlink fucking up on leaking your GPS coordinates also on front page
• ralphlarry 3mo ago
  [dead]
• callamdelaney 3mo ago
  They were doing this over a year ago [1] [1] https://www.linkedin.com/posts/callam-d-b38b05105_windows-is-insane-to-me-coming-from-linux-activity-7303861863992180736-J0Os https://www.linkedin.com/posts/callam-d-b38b05105_windows-is...
  • downrightmike 3mo ago
    linkedin EW
• Ciantic 3mo ago
  I also discovered that these days motherboards come with a payload in their chipset, which gets installed automatically in background unless you figure out to turn it off from BIOS before installing Windows. In my case it was bunch of ASUS useless stuff, not just drivers, some "Armoury Crate" etc. Which just keeps running in background. I've switched to KDE, that kind of solved itself.
  • guax 3mo ago
    This does not make sense to me. It's likely the exact same scenario where the software is delivered using windows driver infra structure for the chipset.
• sinoue 3mo ago
  Trust is a valuable commodity that once lost is very hard to regain. LG's big brother installs has me questions buying anything LG to bring in my home.
• buzer 3mo ago
  If someone is in EU and is affected by this they could potentially utilize GDPR to make both Microsoft and LG take responsibility for this. It's hard to say directly from the article if there is any GDPR breach. If everything was part of the installer and it doesn't actually submit anything (including downloading the ad) to LG then it's harder to argue that there is GDPR violation, but knowing the SOP of these kinds of software that is unlikely. If the software did indeed send personal data to LG then there are at least following question: How was Article 13 notice delivered to user? Article says that this was installed quietly. Did Microsoft deliver Article 13 compliant notice to user at some point? They probably did deliver their own notice (though it's open question if it's compliant), but not LG's. However since Microsoft is the one that installed the software and they exercise control over the standards which must be met, it's possible that they would end up being joint controller at least for some processing. I should add that Article 13 requires that the notice is given "at the time when personal data are obtained". The only exception is when "data subject already has the information" and possible Article 23 restrictions, but those are unlikely to apply. If someone wants to make a complaint they should first make Article 15 request to LG. Copy of personal data is useful, but 15(1) information is the primary goal. Additionally ask for information on how and when did LG provide you the Article 13 notice if they did indeed process your personal data. After that if they cannot show that they provided Article 13 notice when they received your personal data submit a complaint to your local DPA. You can additionally flag other violations as well if they are applicable (e.g. not naming recipients as part of Article 15 response, not giving actual retention time or meaningful information how that is determined, invalid legal basis etc.). You should also flag in the complaint that Microsoft is likely joint controller for some of the processing given that they are the ones who approved the automatic install of the software which violated GDPR.
• throwatdem12311 3mo ago
  Installing drivers and software for connected hardware is just something Windows has done through Windows update for a long time. Is this a good practice? I don’t really know. We used to get drivers on CDs, but barely anyone has a drive on their computer anymore. You could download them from the vendor website but these are usually a mess and very difficult to navigate to find the right thing — impossible for your grandma. Could do like Linux and just build trusted software right into the kernel - but then people will complain about bloat. So we are where we are. I guess.
  • dist-epoch 3mo ago
    Windows already ships with gigabytes of drivers. This is why you can plug most popular hardware on an offline Windows and it will work.
  • frollogaston 3mo ago
    It's pretty rare nowadays to need drivers for specific hardware that ordinary people are going to plug in. Maybe printers are the unfortunate exception.
• deleted 3mo ago
  [deleted]
• scottydelta 3mo ago
  Similarly after getting annoyed at my TV for showing ads and other privacy issues, I have started working on a smart TV version of the casting device my startup makes. I have been using it for both personal use and other work use-cases, here is a demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jObZzI2_pv0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jObZzI2_pv0 Just like youtube, I can log in to my netflix, amazon prime and then use the touch screen to choose the movie to watch and it gets played on the external screen. I am building it how I would use it as a power user.
  • newsoftheday 3mo ago
    We have a smart TV on the way. We do not plan to run the setup, it won't have Internet access. We plan to do what we've done for over a decade now, connect our Kubuntu laptop in the entertainment center to it and select it as the default input device. And occasionally watch OTA TV shows. So we will use it as ... a monitor and plain TV, that happens to have far better video and sound quality than our old TV.
    • scottydelta 3mo ago
      that's the same conclusion I came to and the device I am developing is basically a Raspberry Pi with my own modified OS that has a casting canvas and it can show all kinds of content. No third-party installs, ads and spywares!
      • drnick1 3mo ago
        Not sure what your homegrown solution is, but check out Plasma Bigscreen too.
        • scottydelta 3mo ago
          it looks very interesting, thanks for pointing me to it. My solution is a casting device like chromecast or apple tv which works without apps and cables. Now I am extending the device's canvas for personal use case without the concept of app stores. AI can control the canvas, show multimedia content, open any website/app, and show you options to log in by extracting context, then control it. So I can tell it to open netflix, it shows login options on screen and once logged in, you can ask it to show catalog or play something by just talking to it. It can connect and cast content to TWO external screens simultaneously, that I think is the most powerful feature.
• inventor7777 3mo ago
  Seems like every day I don't use Windows, the less I miss it lol
• winstonwinston 3mo ago
  Microsoft can remove device driver crapware from being distributed via windows update if you can get their attention on this.
• phendrenad2 3mo ago
  All gaming brands try to install software with every driver update. AMD, Nvidia, Razer, Corsair, etc. The difference is LG made it silent, which is a big no-no. Pushback should be on LG, a respected consumer brand that should know better.
• CurbStomper 3mo ago
  [dead]
• __MatrixMan__ 3mo ago
  It's shit like this that caused me to start refusing to help my mom and her friends with their windows computers. I'm not going to support their shady activities anymore. If you want my help the first thing we're doing is installing Linux.
• bravo777 3mo ago
  Windows works well most of the time for most people. I have a couple of Windows PC's, both exotic and standard, and I get what I paid for out of them. Humans love to hyper fixate on the failure cases when they're bored, and this is just one of them for Windows. Mostly anyone who has a need to work for privacy and making their own lives difficult by removing automations deserve working through the barrier of entry to do so.
• DevPulse 3mo ago
  I am using an LG ultra wide monitor and have not had any popups or ads.
• variadix 3mo ago
  Alienware does the same thing, and as far as I could figure out, there is no way to stop it. The enshitification of Windows at this point is incredible.
• lardosaurusrex 3mo ago
  I dunno why so many people across different platforms insist that anyone concerned about this is overdramatic. This is one of those things where if I found the person responsible I would likely spit in their face; if not worse. It's quite literally spyware installed as you plug it in much like those old DVD DRMs from sony that would install spyware. It's garbage.
  • sixothree 3mo ago
    Imagine a coworker doing this.
• was8309 3mo ago
  the instructions to enable "Prevent automatic download of applications associated with device metadata" don't work for me w/ W11, any ideas? thanks
  • shostack 3mo ago
    Or for anyone on Windows 10 Home
  • was8309 3mo ago
    modify your Local Group Policy Microsoft Learn DeviceInstallation Policy. Open gpedit.msc, navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Device Installation, and set Prevent automatic download of applications associated with device metadata to Enabled
• mfro 3mo ago
  Fun fact, Gigabyte motherboards do the same thing. Thankfully they give you an option to disable it in BIOS.
  • guax 3mo ago
    Jeez, I had to search because this is baffling to me but alas, there it is: > Gigabyte's UEFI firmware leverages WPBT to drop an executable—specifically GigabyteUpdateService.exe—into the Windows %SystemRoot%\system32\ directory during the early stages of the boot process. This executable automatically connects to the internet to download and install Gigabyte's auto-update application, often referred to as the "APP Center".
• OptionOfT 3mo ago
  Windows urgently needs to revamp their driver consent model. You can't block a just one driver. E.g. for my touch screen on the Lenovo website there is version X. When I install it the next day Windows installs X-1. On Lenovo's website the latest version is 7.7.2.66 (https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-p-series-laptops/thinkpad-p1-gen-5-type-21dc-21dd/21dc/21dccto1ww/pw048ks7/downloads/ds557571-wintab-driver-for-windows-11-version-21h2-or-later-10-64-bit-version-21h2-or-later-thinkpad-p1-gen-5-x1-extreme-gen-5 https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netb...). Windows reverts that to 7.7.2.44. I tried blocking that update with the Powershell command-thingy, but even that doesn't work: Administrator in ~ get-windowsupdate -isHidden | ft Status,KB,Size,Title Status KB Size Title ------ -- ---- ----- ----H-- 92KB Wacom Technology - HIDClass - 7.7.2.44 (this command by the way takes 20+ seconds), and the filtering doesn't work because there is no KB.
• msla 3mo ago
  There's two maxims: You get what you pay for. If you're the customer, you're the product. "You get what you pay for" means if you buy proprietary software, you get software from proprietary vendors who act like modern proprietary vendors act these days, which is using every avenue to maximize profits. There's no recourse, because it is proprietary and, therefore, belongs to the software maker, and not you. It is not your property, it is theirs. Which leads into... "If you're the customer, you're the product" because customers are valuable products. You willingly bought the service, so your data is data from someone who is interested in the company and probably willing to buy more from it and its partners if the company can target you. Your data, therefore, has resale value, making you a product to be sold.
• deathanatos 3mo ago
  Malware like this will continue until there is privacy laws that make it illegal. The GN video focuses a lot on consent, and while maybe this is notionally currently illegal without consent, that just steers towards companies shipping a generic ToS popup, claiming you "read" that 1.8 PiB of ToS, and including the "oh btdubs we can modify these terms at any times and if you want to go to court lol forced arbitration has other ideas about that." MS & Windows having conditioned users to expect / think they need drivers for peripherals speaking standard protocols is also part of this. A monitor shouldn't need a driver. It takes the pixels, it displays the pixels.
  • sixothree 3mo ago
    I'm 100% certain if an individual did this, they would be in jail.
• ChrisArchitect 3mo ago
  Earlier: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48953226 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48953226
• nipperkinfeet 3mo ago
  Over time, major tech companies have learned from malware writers and now incorporate these tactics into their own products. This is a matter of great concern.
• ta988 3mo ago
  Windows is malware that pulls other malware.
• j45 3mo ago
  This appears to be much worse on so many more fronts than this article says. It's basically how a virus would infect your computer through a USB Key. Forcing itself to be installed, hiding what it does, sustaining itself across reboots, bypassing all security restrictions... because a monitor might need something new after all these decades?
• Telaneo 3mo ago
  My heart aches for those who can't opt out of using Windows.
• paweladamczuk 3mo ago
  I once plugged in a Logitech keyboard on a fresh system and got a colorful branded popup covering several inches of screen real estate in the bottom right corner. It was urging me to download some Logitech software. As far as I know, the source of the graphics was not the unifying receiver that I plugged in the USB port, and the notification was not using any OS API meant for hardware to be avle to prompt the user for additional download. It was a Logitech-built DLL shipped and loaded by the operating system as part of some default driver for the Logitech keyboard.
• arikrahman 3mo ago
  If lack of ddcutil wasn't enough reason to switch to another brand, this sure as heck is.
• jzer0cool 3mo ago
  How to ensure physical devices like keyboard, monitor, mouse are safe? Essentially all recording devices.
• cosmotic 3mo ago
  If you're going to blame someone here, it should probably be Microsoft. They are the ones that built the system LG is utilizing.
  • duxup 3mo ago
    I’m on team blame both.
• dev1ycan 3mo ago
  The quick state in which we're devolving into a dystopia will eventually be studied a hundred years from now...
• ninalanyon 3mo ago
  Why does a monitor install anything at all? Why does it even have a mechanism to do so?
• hangrybear666 3mo ago
  This should not only be illegal in the EU but for the entire world. Malware level shit
• deleted 3mo ago
  [deleted]
• barelysapient 3mo ago
  Another reason to avoid windows.
• trelane 3mo ago
  This is (one of) the downsides of Windows' vendor-provided driver system. Compared to Linux's FOSS-centered system. When folks ask "Why doesn't Linux have a stable binary DDK API" this is one of the inevitable downsides of having it.
  • guax 3mo ago
    I think the fault is entirely on Microsoft for allowing the abuse. I do remember back in the older windows that the driver that auto installs was always the bare basic thing to make the device work. If you wanted the whole support you had to go and download or install from disc.
• iugtmkbdfil834 3mo ago
  Shame. I really, really liked LG as a brand. On the shit list it goes. Also, and not completely unrelated, we may be slowly approaching times of cruel and usual punishment like tarring coming back. I swear this may be the only way to leave some 'new and exciting way to monetize the market' unexplored. At some point, all that entrepreneurial spirit may need to be penalized. And I am saying this as an MBA.
• tailrecursion 3mo ago
  I'm starting to think that complaining about these kinds of practices isn't having an effect.
• Havoc 3mo ago
  LG's bad faith actions aside I'd think this also casts significant doubt on MS's running of Win Update. Why are they allowing mystery crap to be installed on user machines on plugging in a device? All sort of aggressive driver signing rules yet crapware autoinstalls is somehow cool? MS wtf are you doing?
• jmward01 3mo ago
  It may seem extreme, but we need laws about digital breaking and entering/assault that cover things like this. It is being done specifically to harm you and without your consent or knowledge. That is assault. We just, as a society, need to start naming things what they actually are and treating them that way.
  • account42 3mo ago
    Governments haven't been keeping up with technology and by the time they get around to it all these practices are already established and normalized.
• tencentshill 3mo ago
  Similar happens for HP devices. They install their printer "ink reminder" ad popups automatically when it grabs the driver.
  • j16sdiz 3mo ago
    Ink reminder is annoying, but marginally relevant to printer. I have yet to see an linkage from LG monitor to McAfee virus.
• ydj 3mo ago
  I used to think LG monitors were a good option for high quality 4k high refresh rate monitors. But having owned one of their expensive gamery offerings, it is basically worse in every way compared to an older acer. Worse DP1.4 stability (needs really nice cables to be stable), slow/broken ddc implementation, weird tearing with hdmi output from a Mac. And I also had an older lg 4k monitor that bricked itself after a power outage, which is apparently a known eeprom issue. Now this. No more LG for me.
• userbinator 3mo ago
  On the surface, identifying and automatically installing drivers and software for the devices you add is not a bad idea. It's how plug-and-play works. The problem is with companies that want you to run their horrible piece of bloatware, and that incentive increased even more with the advent of "telemetry" (spyware). Those complaining about "consent" don't realise that this stuff has definitely always been passed through the legal department, and was likely in the Windows EULA (which amounted to giving Microsoft full control over your machine the last time I looked, several years ago.) As always, "the road to hell is paved with good intentions."
• spl757 3mo ago
  Easy fix. Don't use Windows. It's been enshittified so many times over that I can't believe people put up with what it has become. I haven't used Windows on my desktop for well over a decade. People are switching away from it now, and MS is trying to backtrack some, but it's too late. They destroyed themselves with false promises of AI that backfired, and just absolute greed.
• surcap526 3mo ago
  [dead]
• globular-toast 3mo ago
  Stop using software you don't control. This will never stop until you end the abusive relationship. Switch to Linux today. I did it more than 15 years ago and never looked back. Reject proprietary software that puts someone else in control of your life.
• hyperman1 3mo ago
  If this happens without clicking I agree, the software is not covered under any EULA and you're allowed to do whatever you want, right?