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Issue link: https://digital.macdirectory.com/i/1154153
when it all came out, Samsung was quick to point out that its TVs had baked-in abilities for detecting malware. So, if any company is going to know about the potential risks of Smart TVs, it's going to be Samsung. Back to Samsung's tweet, it's important to note that we aren't sure exactly why they tweeted this out; it's possible that the company was just being proactive, trying to protect its consumers, or maybe they caught wind of a new security threat percolating out on the Internet. What the truth is remains a little murky. Not only that but, as the Verge points out, if Samsung can detect malware — and users can run a virus scan on the TV after digging through a million menus — why isn't that process entirely automatic? That's a good question, and there could ultimately be a few reasons why that's the case. The Verge uses the rest of its space in the article to make a passionate argument against buying a smart TV at all. However, if you've gone TV shopping any time in the past few years, you've probably noticed that it's getting more challenging to find a unit that doesn't have some Internet functionality baked into it on some level. So, what if you search and search and the best option available to you is still a Smart TV? There are a few things you can do, and Samsung's tweet has the right idea: if you do connect your TV to the Wi-Fi, make sure it has a virus scanning capability built in like Samsung TVs, and use it regularly. However, you could always buy a smart TV and never connect it to the Internet — you might choose to use alternate hardware, such as an Apple TV or even a games console, to watch your favorite streaming services, rather than trying to use the often-clunky built-in apps. Overall, though, it's best to simply be aware — your TV is a computer now, too.