SEOUL, September 13 — LG Electronics has publicly denied accusations that its smart televisions continuously record and transmit users’ conversations and viewing activity, pushing back against a widely circulated report and a wave of online claims that its sets capture ambient audio and viewing data without adequate consent. The South Korean manufacturer called the allegations groundless, stating plainly that its TVs do not continuously record users. It also maintains that its smart TVs comply with applicable privacy laws.
The mechanism at the centre of the dispute is narrower than the claims suggest. Voice recognition on LG televisions typically requires the user to press and hold a button on the remote control.
Only then does the TV process the spoken command. LG says voice data is handled in accordance with its privacy policy, and that users can disable voice recognition features altogether. That button-press detail matters.
It is the difference between a television that listens constantly and one that listens when told to — and it is the crux of LG’s defence. The company’s smart TV lineup includes models powered by its webOS operating system, which supports voice commands and internet-connected applications.
LG has not disclosed any new privacy policy changes in connection with the denial.
A familiar argument for the industry
The controversy echoes earlier privacy concerns raised about smart TVs from multiple manufacturers. In 2015, Samsung faced criticism after its smart TV privacy policy warned that voice commands could be transmitted to third parties. Two years later, the Federal Trade Commission in the United States took action against Vizio over allegations that its smart TVs collected and sold viewing data without users’ consent.
Vizio agreed to pay $2.2 million to settle that case. Earlier still, in 2013, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office investigated a complaint that a smart TV was collecting data.
No enforcement action followed. Privacy advocates have long warned that internet-connected televisions can collect viewing habits, device identifiers and, when voice features are enabled, audio snippets. Those warnings have grown louder as scrutiny of how consumer electronics companies handle personal data has intensified.
What to watch next
LG continues to sell smart TVs globally, and its response forms part of an effort to reassure customers about the privacy of its products. The company was founded in 1958 as GoldStar and adopted the LG brand in 1995. It is headquartered in Seoul and ranks among the world’s largest manufacturers of televisions and home appliances.
For now, the dispute rests on competing accounts of what the hardware does when nobody is holding the remote. Watch for whether regulators in any market choose to examine the claims, and whether LG’s rivals face similar questions about the listening habits of the sets in our living rooms.
