Samsung to remove Smart TV apps that expose your internet connection

Samsung is pulling risky Smart TV apps from its platform after Norwegian cybersecurity firm Mnemonic discovered some could secretly share users' internet connections with strangers. The practice turns home TVs into residential proxy networks that hackers and cyber spies can exploit.

The company says it has stopped accepting new apps with this technology and is now removing existing ones. The move follows research published on Monday that flagged several apps on Samsung's Smart TV platform containing software capable of making users' connections available to third parties.

What the researchers found

A simple Pac-Man game, previously featured in Samsung's "Editor's Choice" section, contained code supplied by proxy network provider Bright Data. The software stayed inactive until users accepted a consent prompt, then kept running in the background even after the game was closed.

Anyone who granted permission effectively turned their television into an internet "exit node," allowing outside parties to route web traffic through their home connection. These so-called "resproxies" make internet traffic appear to come from ordinary homes rather than commercial servers.

The technology has legitimate uses, including bypassing internet censorship and collecting public data for research or AI training. But cybersecurity experts say it has become a preferred tool for hackers, fraudsters and cyber spies trying to hide malicious activity.

Samsung's response and the wider risk

A Samsung spokesperson confirmed the crackdown. "We have already restricted new app registrations that incorporate such proxy functionalities on our Smart TV platform," the company said. "We are currently implementing strict platform-wide developer policies explicitly banning residential proxy SDKs, and we are working to identify and remove all apps currently available in our store that contain these components."

The announcement comes weeks after LG introduced a similar ban. Reports had shown that nearly half of the apps on LG's smart TV store contained comparable proxy software.

Mnemonic security consultant Harrison Sand warned the problem goes beyond a handful of apps. Many Smart TV apps are only a few lines of code that load content from external servers. App reviews may inspect only that limited code, not the final software delivered to users. "What was reviewed is not necessarily what is running," Sand said.

He also warned that a simple change to code hosted on external servers could activate proxy functionality across millions of Smart TVs at once, creating a massive botnet for large-scale cyber operations. During his investigation, Sand observed network activity linked to web scraping, including the collection of LinkedIn profiles and data used to train AI models.

What Nigerian Smart TV users should do

Samsung TV owners should review installed apps and uninstall anything unfamiliar, especially older games and little-known applications. Avoid granting permissions without understanding why they are needed, keep firmware updated, and download apps only from trusted developers.

For Nigerian consumers, this is another reminder that smart TVs carry the same security risks as phones and computers. With Samsung also cutting software support for popular models like the Galaxy A13, A23 LTE and M33 5G from May 2026, users of Samsung devices in emerging markets face a clear choice: upgrade for better security or stay exposed to growing threats.