Yes, Your TV Is Probably Spying on You. Your Fridge, Too : Rachel Cericola et al. / Wirecutter / (New York Times)

Article shared by Fouad Kronfol

Interesting information. This is not Big Brother watching, it is Big Brother and his WholeFamily spying on us.
Enjoy
Fouad

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Summary
This in-depth investigation reveals how smart home devices — from TVs and thermostats to doorbells and security cameras — quietly collect vast amounts of personal data and feed it into a sprawling, opaque data-broker economy.

These devices log what you watch, say, and do, often transmitting data to advertisers, insurers, political groups, and governments through real-time bidding (RTB) systems. While companies claim the data is anonymized and used for product improvement, experts warn that the scope and sensitivity of what is captured — including household locations, personal habits, and even health or religious information — are alarming.

The article outlines steps individuals can take to limit data exposure. These include: creating guest Wi-Fi networks for smart devices, disabling ACR (Automatic Content Recognition) on smart TVs, using privacy-focused browsers and VPNs, restricting app permissions, using burner email addresses, and opting out of data broker services (a time-consuming but possible process). 

The authors emphasize that while convenience is the lure of smart technology, users must weigh it against the persistent erosion of privacy. Regulatory efforts are uneven, and until stronger protections are in place, safeguarding personal data largely falls to individual vigilance.

Quotes
“More than a thousand companies in the U.S. alone... are devoted to gathering your personal data.”
“Your smart TV is screenshotting your shows.”
“Data is the fuel of the smart home.”
“The golden rule of internet-connected security cameras is to never point them at anything you wouldn’t want the world to see.”
“96% of [popular free Android apps] contained trackers... 87% send data to Google, and 68% send data to Facebook.”
“The average American home has 17 internet-connected devices silently observing their activities.”