TRENTON, N.J. – New Jersey families watching television and Netflix on smart TVs are susceptible to high-tech spying that prompted legislation introduced this week by Assemblyman Ron Dancer. The bill (A4677) prohibits television manufacturers from exploiting the technology to monitor and collect data from viewers without consent.

“The technology inside today’s TVs make them a powerful tool for infiltrating living rooms and bedrooms of unsuspecting families, and the potential for abuse is staggering,” said Dancer (R—Ocean). “The proliferation of these super TVs present privacy issues similar to drones outfitted with video cameras. In both cases, laws have to be changed to keep pace with rapidly developing technology to protect the privacy of New Jerseyans.”

Vizio, a smart TV manufacturer, recently agreed to pay $2.5 million to settle charges the company collected viewing data from more than 11 million televisions and sold the information to marketers. The complaint alleged Vizio violated the Federal Trade Commission Act and New Jersey consumer protection laws.

“People don’t realize that while they are watching their TV, it could be spying on them,” said Dancer. “Even TVs available off the discount racks have the processing power of computers, sensitive microphones that can pick up conversations in the home, and even front-mounted cameras. Even more troubling, they are connected to the internet through WIFI which can be used to transmit personal information to servers anywhere in the world.”

Only a day after Dancer introduced his legislation, WikiLeaks released an enormous cache of emails about CIA surveillance indicating federal agents have hacked smart TVs to gather confidential information in spying operations.

Dancer’s bill requires any connected television with voice recognition features include a clear and conspicuous notice to users, and before installation and initial setup of the TV, users must provide consent.