What happened
Norwegian cybersecurity firm Mnemonic published research showing that popular apps on Samsung smart TVs, including one featured in Samsung's own "Editor's Choice" selections, a Pac-Man game containing code from the Israel-based proxy provider Bright Data, were quietly enrolling users' TVs into residential proxy networks. These networks let outside parties route their own web traffic through ordinary home and office internet connections, effectively turning a TV into an always-on relay for someone else's traffic, sometimes even when the app isn't open. Researcher Harrison Sand noted that what gets reviewed for app store approval isn't necessarily what ends up running on the device. In response, Samsung said it has restricted new app registrations containing proxy functionality and is "implementing strict platform-wide developer policies explicitly banning residential proxy SDKs." The move follows LG's similar ban a month earlier, after LG found roughly 42% of its own apps had enlisted smart TVs into proxy networks.
Why it matters for your business
If your office, waiting room, break room, or storefront has a smart TV connected to your business Wi-Fi for signage, background music, or a customer-facing display, it could be quietly relaying someone else's internet traffic, traffic that could include anything from ad fraud to illegal activity, all routed through your business's IP address. That's a real liability and bandwidth issue, not just a privacy one. This is a good moment to audit any smart TVs, streaming boxes, or other extra devices on your business network, check what apps are installed, and consider putting guest or display devices on a separate network from anything handling business data.