How to Turn Off Tracking Software on Your New Smart TV or Streaming Device

Smart TVs are a great tech gift, especially because they’re so cheap relative to what they cost just a few years ago. A new 50-inch smart TV with crystal-clear 4K streaming ability can go for as little as $369, and the price continues to plummet as new manufacturers enter the market (like Roku announcing it is now manufacturing their own).

One of the reasons TV costs have continued to drop is the partnership between TV manufacturers and advertisers. TV makers embed tracking software into their operating systems to gather information about users’ viewing habits, then sell that data to ad agencies, who use it to show users more relevant advertisements. This gives TV manufacturers a new revenue stream that allows for extremely cheap prices, according to reporting from the Atlantic.

So how can you get your TV to stop tracking your viewing habits? It’s simple, but each smart TV offers a slightly different way to turn off tracking software. Check below for step-by-step guides for turning off tracking on your new device.

What kind of data do streaming devices and TVs collect?

TVs and streaming devices often gather data on what you watch, what apps you use, what ads you engage with, how long you spend on certain platforms, and other activity on your smart TV or streaming device. This data is useful to advertisers, third parties, and the manufacturers themselves in helping to shape targetting ads, personalizing recommendations, and more.

It’s important to note that other devices, such as phones, computers, and even apps and websites, also collect usage data in this way. So while turning off the tracking on your specific smart TV or streaming device will prevent those companies from tracking your data, you will need to do so in apps that you visit as well in order to make your streaming completely anonymous.

For each of the devices and TV brands below, they may monitor different things based on their operating system. In addition to disabling their tracking, we’ve checked out their privacy policies to find any more specifics.

How to turn off Amazon Fire TV tracking

Whether you are using the stick, the cube, or the Amazon TV itself, there are plenty of devices by Amazon that can capture your streaming data. In addition to streaming content from popular services like Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video (which is owned by Amazon), users can also use Fire TV to access a variety of other apps and games, as well as to control their smart home devices. Here’s how to turn off all that data that could be tracked through your Amazon Fire TV device:

1. Click “Settings.”
2. Scroll to “Preferences.”
3. Select “Privacy Settings.”
4. Scroll down to “Device Usage Data,” then “Collect App Usage Data,” and “Internet-based Ads,” turning off each one.

Your Fire TV device will now be unable to keep track of your data for advertising purposes, or keep tabs on how often you use your apps. It will still have ads, but they will no longer be targeted. Amazon’s privacy policy states that it keeps track of customers’ third-party app usage (though not which shows/movies they choose to watch when they are using an app), use of the device’s features, and device settings.

In addition, if you use Alexa to search with your Amazon Fire TV, you can go the extra step of managing your Alexa Privacy Settings by deleting your voice history or view your home device history.

How to turn off Roku streaming device tracking

Roku is one of the most popular devices when it comes to streaming – and it comes in multiple formats: Plug-in Stick, Cube, and TVs. Depending on the device, turning off tracking can vary slightly.

If you are using the Roku stick, express, ultra, or streambar, here are the steps:

1. Navigate to “Settings.”
2. Scroll to “Privacy.”
3. Move to “Advertising,” and check the box that says “Limit Ad Tracking.”

If you are using a Roku TV (such as Hitachi, TCL, or Sharp), here are the steps:

1. Determine if your TV is a Roku TV (typically printed on the remote or visible on the home screen)
2. Open the “Settings” menu.
3. Scroll to “Privacy.”
4. Choose “Smart TV Experience” to disable “Use Info From my TV Inputs.”
5. Navigate to “Advertising” to turn off ad-tracking.
6. Head over to “Microphone” to tweak settings for Channel Microphone Access and Channel Permissions.

Roku’s privacy policy informs users that it normally collects data regarding your search history, search results, audio information when you use voice-enabled features, channels you access (including usage statistics such as what channels you access, the time you access them, and how long you spend viewing them), interactions with content and advertisements, and settings and preferences.

Checking the “Limit ad tracking” box will not stop services like Netflix or Disney+ that you use via Roku from gathering their own data while you use their service via Roku, but it will stop Roku itself from building personalized, target ads.

How to turn off Google Chromecast and Android TV tracking

Google Chromecast is a small device connected via HDMI that allows you to stream from one of its built-in apps (such as Hulu, Netflix, and YouTube TV) or cast directly from your phone, tablet, or computer. One of the reasons Chromecast is popular is because it is very easy to use and is relatively inexpensive, making it an attractive option for those who want to add streaming capabilities to their TV without breaking the bank. To turn off Chromecast tracking:

1. Find “Settings.”
2. Scroll to “Privacy.”
3. Click “Usage and Diagnostics,” and switch the tab to “off.”
4. Click “Ads,” then “Opt Out of Ads Personalization.”

If you have purchased an Android TV, it probably won’t say “Android” or “Google” on it but many TV manufacturer brands run on this operating system. The most popular include Phillips, Sony, and Toshiba, while other brands (such as Hisense, Panasonic, Sharp, and Westinghouse) have only specific tv models running it. Once you’ve determined that your TV is an Android TV, here are the steps to turning off tracking:

1. Navigate to “Settings.”
2. Scroll to “About.”
3. Find the “Legal Information” tab.
4. Turn off the ability for your device to personalize your ad experience.

Once you’ve done this (either on the Chromecast or the Android TV), Google will no longer use your viewing/browsing information to build a personalized advertisement stack for you. Google’s privacy policy states that its default tracking gathers data regarding your search terms, videos you watch, ads that you interact with, purchase information, other people you share content with, voice-search usage, and activity on third-party apps.

How to turn off Apple TV tracking

Apple TV is a streaming media player that allows users to access a variety of online content, including movies, TV shows, music, and games. It connects to a TV or other display device through an HDMI port and can be controlled using a remote or an app on a smartphone or tablet. The device is powered by a processor and runs on the tvOS operating system, which is based on iOS. Using your phone app or physical remote, here’s how to turn off tracking:

1. Click the “Settings” icon.
2. Hit the “General” tab.
3. Scroll to “Privacy”.
4. Click “Tracking,” and ensure the “Allow Apps to Ask to Track” setting is on.
5. Head back to the “Privacy” menu, and find the “Analytics and Improvements” section.
6. Change “Share Apple TV Analytics” and “Improve Siri and Dictation” to “Off.”

Apple’s privacy policy says that it collects information about your purchases, downloads, activity in the Apple TV app, the content you watch, and where you watch it in the Apple TV app and in connected apps on any of your supported devices.

How to turn off LG webOS tracking

LG WebOS is an operating system that is used on LG smart TVs. It is designed to be user-friendly and intuitive, with a focus on making it easy to find and watch your favorite content. But as intuitive as the TV is to navigate, turning off tracking can be a little more complicated:

1. Find the “Settings” tab.
2. Scroll to “Additional Settings.”
3. Find the “General” tab.
4. Select “Live Plus” to turn off automatic content recognition (ACR) software.
5. Select “Advertisements” and switch setting to “Do Not Sell My Personal Information.”
6. Navigate back to “Additional Settings.”
7. Click “User Agreements,” review the terms of use and privacy policy, and then then opt out of Viewing Information, Voice Information, Interest-Based & Cross Device Advertising, and Live Plus Automatic Content Recognition.

LG webOS-equipped TVs use ACR technology, which tracks and automatically recognizes the images appearing on your screen; simply put, ACR recognizes what you’re watching in real time. Companies use this data to track viewership numbers as well as for advertising purposes.

How to turn off Samsung Tizen Tracking

Samsung Tizen is an operating system that is used on a variety of Samsung devices, including smart TVs, smartphones, and smartwatches. It also includes a wide range of built-in apps and services, such as a web browser, media player, and fitness tracker. On your Samsung TV, this is how you block tracking from happening:

1. Find “Settings.”
2. Open “Support.”
3. Select “Terms and Privacy,” then “Privacy Choices.”
4. Click “Viewing Information Services” to disable ACR.
5. Navigate to “Interest-Based Advertising” to turn off ad personalization.
6. Head to “Voice Recognition Services” to adjust voice data collection.

How to turn off Sony TV tracking

We mentioned earlier that Sony has models running on different operating systems. The Android TV instructions are above, but for Sony there is one additional area to disable:

1. Head to “Settings.”
2. Open “Device Preferences.”
3. Turn off “Samba Interactive TV” to disable ACR.

How to turn off VIZIO SmartCast TV tracking

SmartCast allows users to access a range of streaming content and apps on their Vizio TV, including popular services like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime. It also includes features such as built-in Chromecast support, which allows users to cast content from their phone or tablet to their TV, and voice control using Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa. We covered how to turn off Google and Amazon above (see Chromecast and Fire TV), but Vizio has a couple additional steps for their own operating system:

1. Open the “Settings” tab.
2. Click “Admin and Privacy.”
3. Choose “Viewing Data” to turn off ACR.
4. Select “Advertising” to change your ad tracking preferences.