It’s for voice recognition for controlling the TV set, but Samsung admits that third-parties can intercept. And some have facial recognition.<\/p>\n
TechCrunch: Today In Creepy Privacy Policies, Samsung\u2019s Eavesdropping TV<\/a><\/p>\n Daily Mail (UK): Samsung warns viewers: Our smart TVs could be snooping on your private conversations<\/a><\/p>\n Salon: I\u2019m terrified of my new TV: Why I\u2019m scared to turn this thing on \u2014 and you\u2019d be, too<\/a> by Michael Price ABC News (AP): Eavesdropping Concerns in Samsung Smart TVs<\/a>:<\/p>\n At least that’s what you’d conclude in reading Samsung’s privacy policy for smart TVs. Voice recognition technology in Samsung’s Internet-connected TVs captures and transmits nearby conversations. The policy warns, “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 through your use of Voice Recognition.”<\/p>\n In a blog post Tuesday, Samsung said it is removing that sentence and clarifying the policy “to better explain what actually occurs.”<\/p>\n For the voice command feature to work, the TV listens for predefined commands such as changing the channel or the volume. That speech isn’t stored or transmitted, according to Samsung. But the remote control also has a microphone that can not only respond to those commands but also search for content, such as requests to recommend a good movie. The speech is translated by third-party software into text and sent back to the TV as a command.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Once in the hands of a third party, I would assume that a Title III eavesdropping warrant would no longer be required. Then, the third party doctrine would likely apply. <\/p>\n Washington Times: Breaking smart TV surveillance capabilities may be a felony<\/a> by Douglas Ernst:<\/p>\n Customers who are concerned about the surveillance capabilities of Samsung\u2019s smart TVs have another headache to worry about: Tampering with the machine to disable such components may be a felony.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It’s for voice recognition for controlling the TV set, but Samsung admits that third-parties can intercept. And some have facial recognition. TechCrunch: Today In Creepy Privacy Policies, Samsung\u2019s Eavesdropping TV Daily Mail (UK): Samsung warns viewers: Our smart TVs could … Continue reading
\nFrom facial recognition to personal data collection, this thing is downright scary — and so are the implications<\/p>\n