4 ms·

> For example, I made a bad purchase and bought a Samsung SmartTV. Is that one of those TVs that spy on your conversations as if 1984 were a fucking manual to

by jordigh 12y ago

> For example, I made a bad purchase and bought a Samsung SmartTV. Is that one of those TVs that spy on your conversations as if 1984 were a fucking manual to be followed? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/09/your-samsung-tv-is-spying-on-you_n_6647762.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/09/your-samsung-tv-is-...

philh 12y ago
Only the conversations that you have while holding down the button on the remote control that tells it to start listening to you.
- jordigh 12y ago
  That's not what this sounds like, but it doesn't say which brand they bought: http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/im-terrified-my-new-tv-why-im-scared-turn-thing http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/im-terrified-my-new-tv...
  - philh 12y ago
    I would bet $10 against $20 that the line > Please be aware that if your spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and transmitted to a third party. was removed from a context which says that this data is only transmitted to a third party when the voice control feature is explicitly activated (e.g. by holding down a button on a remote control, or by saying a command word). I'd bet $20 against $10 that regardless of whether the privacy policy says that, that's what actually happens. (I.e. I'm assigning significant weight to the possibility that the privacy policy does not explicitly rule out them doing it, but they still don't do it.) But that seems harder to pin down. E.g. I'm not going to say that no Samsung Smart TV has ever transmitted any speech outside of that situation.
    - jordigh 12y ago
      What I find most interesting is that I'm quite eager and happy to believe that Samsung is spying on us, while you seem to be eager and happy to assert that they wouldn't do such an evil thing. What's different about you and me? Why do you want to trust Samsung, but I don't?
      - philh 12y ago
        Just to be clear: I think that currently, these TVs do not record audio and send it over the internet except when voice control is specifically activated (and not just enabled). I'm not saying they don't have that ability, or that they never will do that, or that they're not spying on people in other ways. To answer your question: If they were, I'm pretty sure we'd have found out by now. I don't think they'd be able to hide the fact that they're sending audio data over the internet. If you connect your TV to a wireless router that you control, you hopefully can't tell exactly what data they're sending to the internet, but you can probably distinguish between "currently sending audio data" and "not currently sending audio data". (Also, are capped internet plans still a thing? Someone who gets a smart TV and then finds their entire data quota used up in a week would probably notice.) And it's somewhat plausible to me that this kind of news would break and I'd miss it. But then I'd expect you to be posting articles about how it actually does happen, instead of one which says that they probably aren't listening in on things you say when you're not using the remote, but here are some things you can do just in case.
      - tedunangst 12y ago
        What's different is that you seem to conflate "trust" and "likely". I can distrust Samsung while still finding it unlikely their TV is spying on me.
arca_vorago 12y ago
Yep, one of those... which is why I wanted to put something I could control on it, but alas I have updated too recently and am afraid of bricking a $3k tv...
- mindslight 12y ago
  Always take software ownership of your devices as soon as you buy them, so you're well within the return period if it doesn't work out. You have a much better opportunity to assert your modification rights during the return period rather than having to beg the manufacturer to honor the warranty. (I know this doesn't help you now, and your next chance is when the device is old enough that you're comfortable losing it. I'm posting this so others don't make the same mistake. I'd personally just forget about the computer in your TV, and setup a proper HTPC).
  - arca_vorago 12y ago
    Thank you for this information, I wish I had thought about it in that manner at the time of purchase, and it is something I think more modern techlectuals should consider.
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]

by jordigh 12y ago

philh 12y ago

Only the conversations that you have while holding down the button on the remote control that tells it to start listening to you.

jordigh 12y ago
That's not what this sounds like, but it doesn't say which brand they bought: http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/im-terrified-my-new-tv-why-im-scared-turn-thing http://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/im-terrified-my-new-tv...
- philh 12y ago
  I would bet $10 against $20 that the line > Please be aware that if your spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and transmitted to a third party. was removed from a context which says that this data is only transmitted to a third party when the voice control feature is explicitly activated (e.g. by holding down a button on a remote control, or by saying a command word). I'd bet $20 against $10 that regardless of whether the privacy policy says that, that's what actually happens. (I.e. I'm assigning significant weight to the possibility that the privacy policy does not explicitly rule out them doing it, but they still don't do it.) But that seems harder to pin down. E.g. I'm not going to say that no Samsung Smart TV has ever transmitted any speech outside of that situation.
  - jordigh 12y ago
    What I find most interesting is that I'm quite eager and happy to believe that Samsung is spying on us, while you seem to be eager and happy to assert that they wouldn't do such an evil thing. What's different about you and me? Why do you want to trust Samsung, but I don't?
    - philh 12y ago
      Just to be clear: I think that currently, these TVs do not record audio and send it over the internet except when voice control is specifically activated (and not just enabled). I'm not saying they don't have that ability, or that they never will do that, or that they're not spying on people in other ways. To answer your question: If they were, I'm pretty sure we'd have found out by now. I don't think they'd be able to hide the fact that they're sending audio data over the internet. If you connect your TV to a wireless router that you control, you hopefully can't tell exactly what data they're sending to the internet, but you can probably distinguish between "currently sending audio data" and "not currently sending audio data". (Also, are capped internet plans still a thing? Someone who gets a smart TV and then finds their entire data quota used up in a week would probably notice.) And it's somewhat plausible to me that this kind of news would break and I'd miss it. But then I'd expect you to be posting articles about how it actually does happen, instead of one which says that they probably aren't listening in on things you say when you're not using the remote, but here are some things you can do just in case.
    - tedunangst 12y ago
      What's different is that you seem to conflate "trust" and "likely". I can distrust Samsung while still finding it unlikely their TV is spying on me.

arca_vorago 12y ago

Yep, one of those... which is why I wanted to put something I could control on it, but alas I have updated too recently and am afraid of bricking a $3k tv...

mindslight 12y ago
Always take software ownership of your devices as soon as you buy them, so you're well within the return period if it doesn't work out. You have a much better opportunity to assert your modification rights during the return period rather than having to beg the manufacturer to honor the warranty. (I know this doesn't help you now, and your next chance is when the device is old enough that you're comfortable losing it. I'm posting this so others don't make the same mistake. I'd personally just forget about the computer in your TV, and setup a proper HTPC).
- arca_vorago 12y ago
  Thank you for this information, I wish I had thought about it in that manner at the time of purchase, and it is something I think more modern techlectuals should consider.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]