Does opting out of smart TV tracking work? Research finds “suspicious” traffic.
Summary
A study from Northeastern University found that smart TVs made by Samsung, Vizio, and Roku still send data to tracking services even after users turn off tracking in the TV settings. This data helps measure what shows people watch and deliver ads, but the ongoing data sending raises privacy concerns.Key Facts
- The research tested 12 smart TVs from 10 brands, covering about 95% of the TVs used in the U.S.
- Automatic content recognition (ACR) sends screenshots or audio clips from the TV to outside servers.
- Samsung, Vizio, and Roku TVs sent tracking data even after users opted out in settings.
- Roku’s tracking during opt-out happened only when using its own streaming app, The Roku Channel.
- Samsung and Vizio TVs showed tracking behavior in more situations beyond just the streaming app.
- The researchers could not see exactly what data was sent because it was encrypted.
- The continued sending of tracking data after opting out is described as “suspicious” and a possible privacy issue.
- The research methods can be used to test other TVs and tracking systems in the future.
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