Tuesday, November 04, 2014

I’m terrified of my new TV...

I just bought a new TV. The old one had a good run, but after the volume got stuck on 63, I decided it was time to replace it. I am now the owner of a new “smart” TV, which promises to deliver streaming multimedia content, games, apps, social media and Internet browsing. Oh, and TV too.

The only problem is that I’m now afraid to use it. You would be too — if you read through the 46-page privacy policy.

The amount of data this thing collects is staggering. It logs where, when, how and for how long you use the TV. It sets tracking cookies and beacons designed to detect “when you have viewed particular content or a particular email message.” It records “the apps you use, the websites you visit, and how you interact with content.” It ignores “do-not-track” requests as a considered matter of policy.

It also has a built-in camera — with facial recognition. The purpose is to provide “gesture control” for the TV and enable you to log in to a personalized account using your face. On the upside, the images are saved on the TV instead of uploaded to a corporate server. On the downside, the Internet connection makes the whole TV vulnerable to hackers who have demonstrated the ability to take complete control of the machine. Full story...

Related posts:
  1. Glenn Greenwald: Why privacy matters...
  2. Is Big Brother spying on your computer – with your own cell phone?
  3. How you can manually change the world: turn off your TV...
  4. Delete your Facebook...
  5. Do personal computers come with NSA surveillance devices built-in as standard?
  6. NSA spying: why it matters...
  7. It’s not just your phone calls – it’s YOU they are listening to...

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