Samsung Removes Smart TV Apps That Secretly Routed Home Internet Through Users’ Devices
Samsung is banning smart TV apps that quietly turn household internet connections into pass-through networks for outside traffic, following new security research that raised concerns about how broadly the practice has spread. The apps embed residential proxy software that routes third-party web traffic through consumer devices, often without users fully understanding how their bandwidth is being used. After being contacted about the findings, Samsung said it has started blocking new apps that include this capability and is working to remove existing ones from its app store.
What Samsung said
A Samsung spokesperson stated: “We have already restricted new app registrations that incorporate such proxy functionalities on our Smart TV platform. 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.”
How the apps turned TVs into exit nodes
The action follows research from Norwegian cybersecurity firm Mnemonic, which found that several Samsung smart TV apps contain code tied to residential proxy networks, sometimes called “resproxies.” These networks route internet traffic through everyday consumer devices, masking the original source behind residential IP addresses. Some of the apps identified claim hundreds of millions of installs.
One example highlighted in the research was a basic Pac-Man game that had previously been featured in Samsung’s Editor’s Choice section. Once activated, the device could carry traffic for third parties in the background, even when the app itself was not in use.
Why the apps slip past review
Mnemonic’s report points to weaknesses in how these apps are reviewed. Many are simple shells that load content from external servers. The code reviewed by a platform like Samsung may not reflect what ultimately runs once the app is live. “What was reviewed is not necessarily what is running,” wrote Harrison Sand at Mnemonic.
To test how it worked in real time, Sand rooted a Samsung TV and monitored network activity, tracking which apps were sending and receiving traffic on behalf of outside users. In the Pac-Man app, he found proxy code linked to Bright Data, a company that operates a large residential proxy network and sells access to scraped datasets. According to the research, the proxy function only activates after a user accepts a consent prompt, and then continues running in the background until the app is removed.
Why this can scale quickly
Sand warned that the setup could be easily expanded. A “simple code change on a web server” could activate proxy behavior across a large number of devices at once, potentially turning them into a coordinated network. Because the apps pull instructions from remote servers, the behavior of an already-installed app can change after it has cleared platform review.
Are residential proxies legal?
Residential proxies themselves are not illegal and have legitimate uses, including bypassing censorship and large-scale data collection. AI companies, for example, rely on them to gather training data from multiple sources. But the same features make them difficult to police. Traffic routed through these networks appears to come from ordinary households rather than centralized servers or suspicious locations, which makes it harder for security systems to flag or block. The traffic is also typically encrypted, limiting visibility into what is actually being transmitted.
From the traffic Sand was able to observe, he said some of it appeared tied to large-scale web scraping, including LinkedIn data and other sources used in AI training. He noted that his view covered only a small portion of the overall activity.
LG is taking similar steps
Samsung is not the only platform dealing with the issue. LG said last month it would also ban apps containing residential proxy software after reports found that around 42% of apps in its store were using similar technology.
What users should check
Samsung has not published a full list of affected apps. Users who want to reduce the risk can review installed apps, remove any they do not recognize or no longer use, and watch for background data usage on a smart TV even when the screen appears idle. Firmware updates and future Samsung store cleanups should also reduce exposure as the new developer policies take effect.
FAQ
What did Samsung do about smart TV proxy apps?
Samsung said it has restricted new app registrations that incorporate proxy functionalities, is rolling out platform-wide developer policies that ban residential proxy SDKs, and is working to identify and remove existing apps that contain these components.
Which apps were found to act as hidden proxies?
Research from cybersecurity firm Mnemonic highlighted several Samsung smart TV apps, including a basic Pac-Man game previously featured in the Editor’s Choice section. Some of the apps identified claim hundreds of millions of installs.
Are residential proxy networks illegal?
Residential proxies are not illegal and have legitimate uses, such as bypassing censorship and gathering training data. The concern raised in the Mnemonic research is that smart TV apps can enroll users without clear disclosure and then relay third-party traffic through home connections, including traffic tied to large-scale web scraping and AI data collection.
Related coverage
This article summarizes reporting from techspot.com.