LG ThinQ data collection: Difference between revisions
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'''LG ThinQ data collection''' is the personal information [[LG]] gathers | '''LG ThinQ data collection''' is the personal information [[LG]] gathers through the connected appliances it markets as ''"AI"'' that listens to and senses the home, and the data it shares with advertising and data-broker partners. LG brands the technology ''"Affectionate Intelligence"'' and says its smart devices are ''"optimized to learn and analyze your physical and emotional life patterns"'', with a ThinQ ON hub that ''"listens to your commands and sense the surroundings."''<ref name="lg-aihome">{{Cite web |title=LG AI Home |url=https://www.lg.com/global/lifes-good-in-action/ai-home/ |website=LG Electronics |access-date=2026-06-19}}</ref> The ThinQ Privacy Policy that governs those features names ''"Advertising partners"'' and ''"marketing companies and data brokers"'' among the parties LG shares with or receives data from, and LG gates the app behind repeated acceptance of that policy: when it revises the terms, the app shows a wall reading ''"Please agree to the terms again."'' with a single ''"Accept all"'' control.<ref name="policy-collect">{{Cite web |title=LG Electronics Privacy Policy |url=https://www.lg.com/global/privacy/ |website=LG Electronics |date=2024-07-10 |access-date=2026-06-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240821003332/https://www.lg.com/global/privacy/ |archive-date=2024-08-21}} "Last Updated: 07 / 10 / 2024." Applies to "our SmartHome services offered via our ThinQ App." Quotations in this article reproduce the version dated July 10, 2024, captured in the viewer's screenshots; the live policy was revised on April 29, 2026.</ref><ref name="consent-wall">Screenshot of the LG ThinQ app re-consent screen, supplied by an LG washing-machine owner in the EU, July 18, 2024. On-screen text reads "Agree to Terms and Conditions", "LG Electronics' Terms of Service has been revised.", "Please agree to the terms again.", "Accept all", "LG Electronics Account", "Terms of Use", "Privacy Policy", and "Next".</ref> | ||
== | == LG markets appliances that listen and sense == | ||
LG brands its connected appliances as artificial intelligence it calls ''"Affectionate Intelligence"'', an ''"empathetic and caring AI"''.<ref name="lg-washer">{{Cite web |title=LG AI Core-Tech in Washing Machine & Dryer |url=https://www.lg.com/global/lg-ai-core-tech/washing-machine-dryer/ |website=LG Electronics |date=2024-12-01 |access-date=2026-06-19}}</ref> Its AI Home marketing describes appliances built to watch, listen to, and learn from the people in the home: | |||
LG | |||
* | * LG says its smart devices are ''"optimized to learn and analyze your physical and emotional life patterns"''.<ref name="lg-aihome" /> | ||
* | * The ThinQ ON hub ''"listens to your commands and sense the surroundings to deliver the Life's Good experience in every moment."''<ref name="lg-aihome" /> | ||
* | * Under ''"Smart sensing"'', LG says that by ''"Detecting temperature, humidity, air quality, and occupancy"'' its devices ''"intuitively optimize performance to match your preferences."''<ref name="lg-aihome" /> | ||
* LG markets an ''"LG AI TV that recognizes you, adapts to you, and cares for you"'', an AI Voice Assistant to ''"Control and manage your devices with just your voice"'', and a per-user ''"Voice ID"''.<ref name="lg-aihome" /> | |||
* In its mobility marketing, LG says that while a user is driving, ''"LG AI syncs with your ready-to-connect devices elsewhere, detects your surroundings, and understands your behavior and emotions."''<ref name="lg-aihome" /> | |||
* The kitchen page lists ''"Analyzing"'', ''"Optimizing"'', ''"Adapting"'', and ''"Listening and responding in real time for seamless living"''; that page does not state that any kitchen appliance contains a microphone or records audio in the home.<ref name="lg-kitchen">{{Cite web |title=Kitchen Reinvented with LG AI Core-Tech |url=https://www.lg.com/global/lg-ai-core-tech/kitchen/ |website=LG Electronics |date=2024-12-01 |access-date=2026-06-19}}</ref> | |||
Cameras and on-device AI appear in LG's higher-end appliances: | |||
* | * At CES 2026, an LG SIGNATURE refrigerator's ThinQ Food feature ''"uses an internal camera to help identify ingredients"'' and an oven's ''"Gourmet AI, which uses an AI camera inside the oven to identify more than 85 dishes"''; the refrigerator is ''"Equipped with conversational AI based on Large Language Model (LLM) technology"''.<ref name="ces2026">{{Cite web |title=LG SIGNATURE Evolves With AI, Redefining Premium Home Appliances at CES 2026 |url=https://www.lg.com/my/about-lg/press-and-media/lg-signature-evolves-with-ai-ces-2026/ |website=LG Electronics |date=2025-12-15 |access-date=2026-06-19}}</ref> | ||
* Not everything LG labels ''"AI"'' involves listening: the AI DD washing machine's feature measures the load, ''"individually analyze[s] the weight and fabric type of your laundry"'', and activates ''"when the load is under 3kg."''<ref name="lg-washer" /> | |||
== What | == What ThinQ collects and shares == | ||
The LG Privacy Policy | The data these features rely on is governed by the LG Privacy Policy, dated ''"Last Updated: 07 / 10 / 2024"'' and applying to ''"our SmartHome services offered via our ThinQ App."''<ref name="policy-collect" /> | ||
Collected directly or through the ThinQ service: | Collected directly or through the ThinQ service: | ||
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</gallery> | </gallery> | ||
== LG's " | == Forced re-consent on connected appliances == | ||
[[File:LG ThinQ re-consent wall.png|thumb|right|upright=0.8|The LG ThinQ app's forced re-consent wall presents a single ''"Accept all"'' control before its ''"Next"'' button, captured by an LG washing-machine owner in the EU on July 18, 2024.<ref name="consent-wall" />]] | |||
LG gates the ThinQ app's features behind repeated acceptance of its terms. The wall a viewer captured in July 2024 routes acceptance through one button: it states ''"LG Electronics' Terms of Service has been revised."'' and ''"Please agree to the terms again."'', and offers a single ''"Accept all"'' control before the ''"Next"'' button, with no per-item toggle.<ref name="consent-wall" /> | |||
LG | One LG washing-machine owner in the EU, who emailed Louis Rossmann on July 18, 2024, documented the wall in use:<ref name="viewer-email">Email to Louis Rossmann from an LG washing-machine owner in the EU, July 18, 2024. Firsthand correspondence; sender identity withheld.</ref> | ||
* | * His washing machine notified him a cycle had finished; opening the notification forced the wall before the app would work again. | ||
* He said the app ''"can't even work locally on my IoT network"'', so he had to expose it to the internet to get a cycle-done notification, and called the exchange ''"The shittiest deal ever."'' | |||
* | |||
== LG smart-device data and security incidents == | == LG smart-device data and security incidents == | ||