Smart TV Safety Tips: Smart TVs tend to make one susceptible to cyber intrusion without awareness of impending danger. Hackers target loopholes in such actions to spy on or keep track of the viewing activities of the enlist.
Luckily, a few easy but effective precautionary measures can keep you and your family safe because, in this article, we discuss steps toward securing your smart TV from threats.
Keep Your Smart TV Software Updated
Perhaps one of the simplest features to protect your smart TV is to keep its software up to date: manufacturers usually roll out updates to improve some security gaps:
- Connect the TV set to power.
- Go to the main menu
- Look for the Settings or Support section.
- Find Software Updates and select that.
- Turn Auto Updates on so that the TV gets updated on its own.
- Since update processes are different for different manufacturers’ models, be sure to check your user guide for specific instructions.
Secure Your Wi-Fi and Router
A smart TV needs to connect to the internet to be fully functional, therefore keeping your home network protected as well from getting hacked is crucial. Hackers would find an entry point even through weak router security.
Here are steps to secure your Wi-Fi:
- Change the default Wi-Fi password to an exclusive and strong one.
- Activate the firewall on your router to add another layer of protection:
- Enter the IP address of your router in a web browser to visit your router’s configuration page.
- Log in with the provided username and password (usually found on the router’s label).
- Locate the Firewall option and enable it.
- Save or apply the changes.
- Think of a VPN as an option on smart TV use, hiding your IP address, and maximizing privacy.
Turn off any Features that are not Required
The term smart TV often refers to features and functions exclusive to itself with regards to data collecting, sharing, or any other additional use, but all these come with a security risk as well.
To ensure better privacy:
- Shut down the sharing data settings. You can locate this from the settings menu on your TV inside the Privacy section.
- Turn off the microphone and camera (especially for models that allow this), which can assist in preventing any unauthorized access.
- Other than that, if your TV has AI motion tracking, you can turn that off too.
Final Thoughts
By taking a proactive role in securing your smart TV against cyber threats, personal information can be kept safe.
It’s just that simple:
- Update regularly on your software installments
- Secure your router
- Turn off the unnecessary features, and you can watch all the worries away from your television.
- Periodic checks on your settings ensure that you’re still well ahead of potential security risks.
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