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Your TV set has become a digital billboard. And it’s only getting worse.
(arstechnica.com)
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this post was submitted on 19 Aug 2024
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Or hear me out... Just don't give it an internet connection.
Some TVs listen for open networks and use those, so if there is one near you your TV could sneak out either way.
open the back of the TV, locate the arial on the board and scratch away the traces leading to it.
If it doesn't have the passphrase for wifi, how is it going to connect? I rarely see unsecured wifis around neighborhoods anymore. For copper/fiber, you're not going to hook it up to keep it disocnnected.
It’s not that simple.
Here’s an example: Amazon could outfit all of their delivery vehicles with open wifi networks. Every Alexa device calls home when a truck drives by.
Here’s another: you may have a guest wifi, or your neighbor, or their neighbor. All it needs is one.
Yeah of course there are solutions to faraday cage it away from the world. But all they need is one connection. You have to stop it forever.
Guest wifi does not mean it is unsecure, it is simply just another logical network. Sure amazon could equip their trucks with wifi I suppose and maybe some TVs would have good connection to update fast enough while a truck is there without a lot of tcp retransmits due to lack of efficient lack of penetration but that's not going effect all brands and surely it isn't something that is currently happening in a large effect.
You could talk about hypotheticals in the future sure but they aren't going to scan for these magical "network ports" that are just hanging around the ether. It needs to have a connection and one that is reasonable in quality and time.
Open networks have no passphrase. Otherwise they wouldn't be open. And yes they're less common but it doesn't mean you're neighbor can't set one up at any given time.
Cheaper TV's sometimes won't function without one.
So buy one that's a little more expensive and will. It's still going to be tons cheaper that a commercial display and offer better performance