Samsung Purges Smart TV Apps That Turn Home Connections Into Public Proxies
The tech giant is removing apps that use residential proxy SDKs after research revealed they expose users' internet connections to strangers.
Samsung is banning and removing smart TV applications that incorporate residential proxy (resproxy) software after security research revealed these apps can expose users' private internet connections to external strangers. The move comes as the company works to purge existing offending software and prevent new apps with similar functionalities from entering its ecosystem.
According to research conducted by the Norwegian security firm Mnemonic, certain Samsung smart TV apps contained code that funnels external web traffic through the home or office connections of the TV owner. In one prominent instance, a Pac-Man game—which Samsung had endorsed and featured in its "Editor's Choice" section—was found to contain resproxy code from Bright Data. In response, a Samsung spokesperson stated, "We have already restricted new app registrations that incorporate such proxy functionalities on our Smart TV platform."
The Mechanics of Residential Proxies
Residential proxy networks operate by using ordinary home internet connections to mask the origin of web traffic. While these networks are utilized by AI companies for large-scale data scraping and by some users to bypass censorship, they are frequently exploited by cybercriminals. By routing malicious activity through a residential IP address, attackers can make their traffic appear to originate from a legitimate household, allowing them to evade detection systems that typically block data center IPs.
A Systemic Review Failure
This vulnerability exposes households to potential hijacking and risks associating their IP addresses with illegal activities conducted by third parties. The presence of this code in "Editor's Choice" apps suggests a significant failure in Samsung's app review process. Harrison Sand, an offensive security consultant at Mnemonic, noted that "what was reviewed is not necessarily what is running," highlighting how "shell" apps that load external content can bypass initial security scrutiny.
Industry-Wide Trends
Samsung is not the first major manufacturer to tackle this issue. LG previously announced a similar ban on residential proxy SDKs within its own smart TV app store. That decision followed reports suggesting that approximately 42% of the apps available in LG's store were utilizing such proxy networks, indicating a widespread industry problem with how third-party SDKs are integrated into living-room hardware.
Next Steps for Users
Samsung is currently implementing platform-wide developer policies to identify and remove existing apps that violate these rules. While the company has restricted new registrations, users are encouraged to keep their TV firmware and applications updated to ensure that compromised apps are purged from their devices. It remains to be seen if other smart hardware manufacturers will follow suit with similar audits of their app ecosystems.