Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed lawsuits on Monday against five major television manufacturers, alleging they illegally collected users’ viewing data through Automated Content Recognition (ACR) technology. The suits name Sony, Samsung, LG, and China-based Hisense and TCL Technology Group Corporation.
The complaints, filed in Texas state courts, allege the manufacturers can use ACR to capture screenshots of television displays as often as every 500 milliseconds, monitor viewing activity in real time and transmit that information to company servers without users’ knowledge or consent.
Paxton’s office described ACR as “an uninvited, invisible digital invader” and said the harvested information is sold to advertisers. The office also raised “serious concerns” that the two China-based companies could be required under China’s National Security Law to provide access to U.S. consumer data; Paxton said the conduct is invasive, deceptive and unlawful.
An LG spokesperson told reporters that “As a matter of policy, LG Electronics USA does not generally comment on pending legal matters such as this.”
The filings follow a precedent set in 2017 when Vizio paid $2.2 million to settle charges from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the New Jersey Attorney General after regulators said the company collected viewing data without consumers’ knowledge. Regulators said the practice captured detailed information on what was being watched and that demographic data was attached to the viewing records; the FTC has documented that activity in a post explaining what Vizio was doing behind the TV screen and in its case materials.
Federal authorities have also advised consumers to secure internet-connected devices and review tracking settings on smart TVs; the FTC published guidance on protecting internet-connected devices and adjusting tracking settings for privacy.