Hacker finds Samsung TV AI listening, OpenAI account suspended
The gist
A cybersecurity researcher reverse-engineered his 2025 Samsung TV and found on-board AI collecting audio and screenshots.
OpenAI banned his account for cyber abuse, raising questions about device research limits.
How it unfolded
- Oct 21, 2026log4j posted on X that they got a root shell on their 2025 Samsung TV and found always-on hot mic functionality, automatic content recognition, geo positioning, network mapping, a targeted ads service and user profile building.
- Oct 23, 2026A Hacker News post titled 'Hacker reverses Samsung TV, finds on-board AI listening OpenAI account suspended' reached 141 points and 26 comments.
- Oct 24, 2026A DEV Community article and an r/singularity post reported the researcher found on-device AI listening for dog and baby sounds, watching viewing behavior and borrowing a soundbar's mic, and that OpenAI banned the account.