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LG TVs and monitors said to surveil users and install bloatware without asking
(www.notebookcheck.net)
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this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2026
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I have used an LG monitor for about 5 years, and never install the manufacturer's software unless it looks genuinely useful. When I saw the Gamers Nexus video I went to check my installed apps, and sure there was LG's monitor app, installed silently without my knowledge.
To prevent this kind of thing in future, run gpedit.msc and enable “Prevent automatic download of applications associated with device metadata” under Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → System → Device Installation.
Or you could just change to an os that doesnt piss on its users constantly
I didn't watch the video, but maybe they said how this done.
If it installed silently, it must be getting pulled in via Windows update right? Where Microsoft just sees this a regular old driver for a device I would imagine?
I have an LG monitor, maybe about 5 years or older. But I don't have windows so I assume it knows nothing.
EDIT: Nevermind. I went and watched the section at the beginning, and yep that is exactly how it is done. Does windows not even vet what a vendor hands them as a driver? Perhaps they don't care, but this seems like an easily exploitable route.
That's what I thought was happening here. The headline is a bit incorrect... the monitor didn't install the bloatware, Windows did.
Now the drivers/software that Windows installed is likely from the MS store/update path and was made and signed by LG, but still. Plug this monitor into linux and it's not going to do it because linux doesn't have that mechanism.