LG to Suspend Smart TV Apps Operating as Residential Proxy Nodes

LG to Suspend Smart TV Apps Operating as Residential Proxy Nodes LG Electronics announced it will suspend webOS smart TV apps that turn televisions into residential proxy nodes unless developers remove the functionality. The decision follows research revealing widespread bundling of proxy SDKs within smart TV applications. Security firm Spur discovered that over 42 percent of apps on LG's webOS store and more than a quarter on Samsung's Tizen include residential proxy SDKs. LG stated that residential proxy networks are not an intended use for its TVs, confirming it is reviewing apps and will suspend those that do not remove the feature. Bright Data, identified by Spur as the majority proxy SDK provider on these platforms, defended its service as opt-in, audited by PwC, and compliant with platform terms. Spur highlighted that consumers cannot easily audit smart TVs, noting buried consent screens risk permission being granted by unauthorized household members like minors. LG's Enforcement Action Following findings by security firm Spur, LG Electronics USA confirmed it is actively reviewing webOS applications and working with developers to eliminate residential proxy software development kits (SDKs). LG Senior Vice President John Taylor stated that residential proxy networks are not an intended use for the company's smart TVs, warning that developers who fail to remove the capability will see their apps suspended. Taylor added that LG plans to strengthen its evaluation process for developer submissions going forward. Proxy SDK Monetization and Vendor Defense Developers integrate proxy SDKs as a monetization method, allowing residential proxy networks to pay them in exchange for routing third-party traffic through users' hardware. Spur observed these SDKs bundled into utilities, screensavers, and casual games, with Bright Data providing the majority of the components. Bright Data defended its operations, asserting that its peers explicitly opt in via dedicated screens, undergo independent PwC audits, and adhere to strict vetting and local network protection measures. Consumer Risks on Smart Devices Spur cautioned that smart TVs present unique risks because consumers rarely view them as computers capable of auditing traffic. The security firm noted that one-time consent prompts buried in television apps fail to provide meaningful transparency or ongoing control, especially when consent might inadvertently be granted by minors or unauthorized household members rather than the primary device owner.

LG计划下架在其智能电视上运行住宅代理节点并违规的应用 安全研究显示LG智能电视应用商店中超42%的应用内嵌住宅代理SDK。LG官方随后宣布，要求webOS开发者移除相关代理功能，违规者将被下架，同时相关代理供应商也作出了合规性回应。 研究发现LG webOS商店中超过42%的应用以及三星Tizen超过四分之一的应用包含住宅代理SDK。 LG高级副总裁确认正要求开发者移除住宅代理选项，否则将暂停并下架对应应用。 住宅代理商Bright Data称其网络经过合规审核且要求用户同意，但研究人员指出电视端隐藏弹窗无法构成有效知情同意。 LG整治电视应用住宅代理现象 安全机构Spur的研究披露，LG智能电视webOS应用商店中超过42%的应用（包括简单游戏、屏保和文件工具）内嵌住宅代理SDK，使未知第三方可通过用户电视路由流量。LG高级副总裁John Taylor表示，住宅代理网络并非智能电视的预期用途，LG已全面展开审查，正与开发者沟通移除该选项，未按要求修改的应用将被暂停上架，未来也将强化审核标准。 代理行业运作与安全争议 应用开发者通常通过集成代理SDK获取分成，将用户设备出租为代理节点。Spur报告指出Bright Data占据了LG与三星电视中大部分代理SDK份额。Bright Data回应称其网络合规运营并通过了普华永道独立审计，用户经由专门界面知情同意且客户经过严格身份验证。然而Spur研究员Trevor Sutter反驳称，电视中埋藏的一次性同意弹窗缺乏实质透明度与持续控制，且家庭中的未成年人等群体也可能误操作授权。 LG近期的其他合作争议 在宣布清理智能电视代理应用的同时，LG近期还因另一项商业推广引发质疑。知名硬件频道Gamers Nexus指出，部分LG高端液晶显示器会通过Windows更新在未弹出明确提示的情况下，自动安装推广McAfee付费杀毒软件的应用。

The home appliance giant **LG Electronics USA** said this week it plans to suspend any apps built for its smart TVs that turn one’s television into an always-on residential proxy node. The move comes less than a month after researchers found that more than 42 percent of games and other apps available for download on LG’s webOS store allow unknown third-parties to route their Internet traffic through a user’s TV. On July 2, we [featured research](https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/07/fbi-seizes-netnut-proxy-platform-popa-botnet/) by the security firm **Spur** that examined the prevalence of residential proxy software development kits (SDKs) in smart TV apps. Spur [found](https://spur.us/blog/smart-tv-apps-residential-proxy-sdks) more than 42 percent of apps available for download on LG smart TVs include SDKs that turn one’s television in a proxy node indefinitely, and that more than a quarter of the apps made for Samsung’s Tizen operating system had similar residential proxy components. Responding to questions about Spur’s research, **LG Senior Vice President John Taylor** told KrebsOnSecurity the company was working with app developers to remove the residential proxy option from their apps on the webOS platform. Developers that fail to comply, he said, will find their apps suspended. “A residential proxy network is not an intended use for LG smart TVs, and LG Electronics is working with developers to remove the residential proxy option from their apps on the webOS platform,” Taylor said. “If this option is not removed, these apps will be suspended.” Taylor said LG is committed to keeping residential proxy networks out of its smart TV apps going forward, and that the company’s review of those apps is “well underway now.” “As part of our ongoing efforts to enhance platform quality and the user experience, LG will continue to strengthen our evaluation process for developer-submitted apps, including those that incorporate residential proxy SDKs,” Taylor wrote in an emailed statement. App makers looking for ways to monetize their creations can turn to residential proxy providers, which pay developers to include SDKs that turn the user’s device into a residential proxy node that is rented to paying customers. In the case of LG and Samsung smart TVs, Spur found residential proxy SDKs bundled with everything from simple games like Pac-Man to screensavers and file utilities. Spur’s report found the residential proxy network **Bright Data** accounted for a majority of proxy SDKs across both Samsung and LG smart TVs. In a statement shared with KrebsOnSecurity, Bright Data said its network is built on consent and responsibility and operates by LG and Samsung terms. “Every peer opts in through a dedicated screen and receives value in return; every customer is vetted, and our practices have now undergone a second independent audit by PwC,” the statement reads. “We remain committed to an open, transparent internet where legitimate businesses, researchers, and institutions can responsibly access data that lives in the public domain.” Bright Data and other proxy providers named in Spur’s report all say they follow rigorous know-your-customer processes to validate legitimate uses of their services, which is often heavily tied to content-scraping activities by said customers. The proxy companies also say they incorporate technological countermeasures to prevent proxy service customers from being able to [interact with and control other devices on the proxy user’s local network](https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/01/the-kimwolf-botnet-is-stalking-your-local-network/). Spur argues the problem is not that residential proxy networks exist, but rather that they are being embedded at scale in devices that most consumers do not think of as computers and are not equipped to audit. “A one-time consent prompt buried in a TV app is not a substitute for meaningful transparency, ongoing control, and platform oversight,” Spur’s **Trevor Sutter** wrote. “The risk is amplified when consent comes from individuals within the household who use the device but shouldn’t give consent, such as minors.” LG’s announcement that it is culling residential proxy SDKs from its app store is welcome news, but the company recently came under fire for another questionable partnership: Pimping McAfee security products via software drivers included in its high-end LCD monitors. Earlier this week, the Youtube channel [Gamers Nexus](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9uefFYe6bM) showed that certain LG LCD monitors will automatically install [an app](https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9pm9n6f47jb8?hl=en-US&gl=US) that promotes paid McAfee antivirus subscriptions, and that the app arrives through Windows Update without an approval prompt. **Update, July 22, 1:06 p.m. ET:** Added statement from Bright Data.