FBI advises securing smart TVs

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has said that smart TVs can be a gateway for hackers to come into homes and must be secured.

In a press release issued by the FBI’s Portland field office under its weekly Oregon’s FBI Tech Tuesday segment, the bureau said hackers may not be able to get access to secure home computers directly, but they can easily get in the backdoor through router via unsecured smart TVs at homes.

Unsecured smart TVs also allow for hackers to change channels, play with the volume, show inappropriate programs to kids and turn on the bedroom TV’s microphone and camera and silently cyberstalk their targets, said the news release.

To secure and protect yourself and your family, the FBI makes five recommendations.

The first thing the FBI suggests involves knowing exactly what features your smart TV comes with and how to control them. The bureau says a basic internet search with the TV’s model number and the words “privacy,” “camera” and “microphone” will help with that.

The FBI then advises not to be dependent on the smart TV’s default security settings.

“Change passwords if you can – and know how to turn off the microphones, cameras, and collection of personal information if possible,” suggests the FBI. “If you can’t turn them off, consider whether you are willing to take the risk of buying that model or using that service.”

Thirdly, the FBI recommends simply using a piece of black tape to cover the camera eye if there is no option to turn the camera off but you want to.

The bureau then says to check the smart TV maker’s ability to update the device with security patches.

Finally, the FBI suggests checking the smart TV maker and the streaming services’ privacy policies and learning what data is collected, how it is stored and what they do with it.

The press release can be read on the Portland field office page of the bureau’s website, here.

Image via FBI Media