this post was submitted on 10 Oct 2023
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No it isn't, there's no hacking involved in connecting to a wifi network. Plus different jurisdictiona might see it differently anyway. And good luck with your lawsuits against mega corps.
This isn't some hypothetical, this is something smart TVs are known to be doing, right now.
Source on that? Not saying I don't believe you, but an article on the topic would help us know what behavior we're talking about here.
https://web.archive.org/web/20210601000527/https://www.reddit.com/r/security/comments/bpjky4/worried_about_your_smart_tv_listening_in_simply/
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25275753
https://web.archive.org/web/20210828035115/https://forum.developer.samsung.com/t/if-you-choose-to-not-connect-your-samsung-smart-tv-to-wifi-it-will-secretly-connect-to-your-neighbours-passwordless-wifi/7926
Most western jurisdictions define hacking as accessing computer resources without permission. So yes, at least in the west, such behaviour definitely counts as hacking. Doesn't matter if there's no encryption breaking or brute forcing going on. If it's connecting to a network that it doesn't have permission to be on, it is breaking the law.
It is possible to get entire products pulled from stores if they are breaching hacking laws.