“Smart TVs are watching you back.”

That’s how Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton opens a series of new lawsuits accusing major television manufacturers of secretly surveilling Texans inside their own homes.

Paxton has filed suit against five major television companies—Samsung, Sony, LG, Hisense, and TCL—alleging they unlawfully collected and monetized detailed viewing data from consumers without meaningful knowledge or consent. Two of the companies named in the lawsuit, Hisense and TCL, are based in China, a fact Paxton says raises additional concerns about data security under China’s National Security Law.

According to the lawsuit, the companies embedded Automated Content Recognition (ACR) technology into their smart televisions. The software allegedly captures screenshots of what appears on a user’s television screen as frequently as every 500 milliseconds, allowing companies to monitor what consumers watch across streaming platforms, cable television, and even external devices connected by HDMI, such as gaming consoles or laptops.

The attorney general’s office alleges that the data is transmitted back to the companies in real time, used to build detailed consumer profiles, and then sold or shared for targeted advertising purposes—often without consumers understanding what they agreed to or how the technology works.

“Companies, especially those connected to the Chinese Communist Party, have no business illegally recording Americans’ devices inside their own homes,” Paxton said in a statement. “This conduct is invasive, deceptive, and unlawful. The fundamental right to privacy will be protected in Texas because owning a television does not mean surrendering your personal information to Big Tech or foreign adversaries.”

The series of similar lawsuits put the allegations in stark terms, describing smart televisions not as passive entertainment devices but as “a mass surveillance system sitting in millions of American living rooms.” 

The petition argues that consumers were deceptively steered into enabling ACR during initial device setup and that any purported consent was buried in dense legal disclosures few users would reasonably understand.

Paxton’s office alleges the companies violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by failing to clearly disclose the extent of data collection, misrepresenting how consumer information would be used, and designing opt-in systems that favored maximum data extraction while making it difficult for users to opt out.

The lawsuits seek civil penalties, injunctive relief to stop the data collection practices, and other remedies allowed under Texas law.

Texas Scorecard reached out to Samsung, Sony, LG, Hisense, and TCL for comment. Both Hisense and LG said they do not comment on legal matters. The other companies did not respond prior to publication.

Brandon Waltens

Brandon serves as the Senior Editor for Texas Scorecard. After managing successful campaigns for top conservative legislators and serving as a Chief of Staff in the Texas Capitol, Brandon moved outside the dome in order to shine a spotlight on conservative victories and establishment corruption in Austin. @bwaltens