Expert advises treating TV as display-only, not as media device
7 Nov 1 6:02 PM · 10d ago · 8 comments · 1 source · development 7 of 8
An experienced commenter synthesized the thread's findings: physically disconnect TV radios, never use built-in apps, use only HDMI inputs from trusted external devices, and accept that all modern TVs are privacy-hostile by design.
“Never use the "apps" built into the TV. Next, don't plug Ethernet into the TV. Plug HDMI cables into the TV. Use a box of your choice on the other end of the HDMI cables. This is now the box that you trust.”
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What people said 8 voices · verbatim
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Some good answers here already. Step 1 is always not to connect the TV to the Internet. You can go further and remove the connectivity daughterboard and/or resolder the WiFi chip.Step 2 is to connect a TV box, but if you replace Samsumg, LG, or Google by Apple or Amazon, you have made no progress at all towards privacy.Having researched this topic…
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First of all, open the TV and disconnect the wireless radio from the main board, on mine (Samsung) it was just unplugging one cable (AI or Google it). I dislike doing stuff like that, but it was easy in my case, maybe you'll be lucky, too.Second, never use the "apps" built into the TV.Next, don't plug Ethernet into the TV. Plug HDMI cables into…
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We have to block our TV from dialling home (there just aren't any privacy oriented 'smart' TVs). We chose to go down the DNS filtering route and pay for https://nextdns.io/ - it turns out it super helpful for a whole host of home network privacy jobs (ad blocks, kids safety filtering, security posture etc.). I can't stop recommending it to people.
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I would go one step further and recommend a router with a customizable, Linux, firmware (OpenWRT, Tomato, DDWRT, etc).Your TV is probably just one of the many devices that sends a scary amount of requests to a bunch of shady servers. With a firewall + DNS server that you control and a decent blocklist you should be able to block most requests and…
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> Use a box of your choice on the other end of the HDMI cables. This is now the box that you trust. (Roku? Shield? Blu-ray? MacBook? PC? Linux? Playstation? XBox? Whatever you want.)If they choose a Firestick or Roku what's the difference? XD
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> First of all, open the TV and disconnect the wireless radio from the main boardThis. Never trust software switches. See my other reply for what I suggest instead of "streaming boxes" that aren't any better than the TV firmware.
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I just rooted my LG in about 30 seconds [using claude] and disabled all the junk. can also run own apps / homebrew.
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I just had claude connect to my Android TV over adp and rip out all of the spyware it could find.
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