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by coryrc 2366 days ago
Solder the antenna to ground on the wifi module. It's what I'll be doing on my next TV.
3 comments

The antenna will probably be inside the TV case and very difficult for the "average" user to try. They'd be too-scared to do so. Heck, I'd wager that a good chunk of electrical-minded individuals, even trained ones, would be scared of doing anything to their expensive device that requires them to open it.
Oh, it surely is. I'm lucky enough to be one of those trained people who can and does do such things (one reason my technology (laptops, TVs, etc) is old is because I continue to repair old stuff instead of getting new shiny).
Or you could just block the TV’s MAC address on your router.
How does that solve anything? Your WiFi should already be password protected anyway. It's other people's routers with open networks you need to worry about.
I don’t see an awful lot of open networks anymore... :/
they'll just connect to your neighbour's router, or their car, or their phone...
That’s a legit concern. If Samsung made a deal with, say, Comcast to connect to the ever-present “xfinitywifi” SSID, then it wouldn’t matter if you’re blocking the sly TV from your own network.
That's a very valid concern, especially since most consumer-grade ISPs are in bed with the media industry and would be very interested in the tracking data from these TVs.
Nothing prevents you from presenting that same SSID as a honeypot.
Only if ripping out the wifi module isn't feasible first.
I could see firmware failing to boot or crashing if an assumed device is missing.