Signs your TV is infested with virus

There’s no doubt that the smart TV is a part of almost every Indian household. While they have become an integral part of our lives, providing entertainment at our fingertips, there may arrive a time when these sleek, high-tech devices backfire on us. Like laptops and smartphones, smart TVs can also fall prey to viruses.

Check out the different signs of a virus attack on a smart TV and analyse if you can relate to either of them or have gone through something like this very recently.  

Most common signs of malware

Read out the signs below to find out if your television has been affected by a virus.

Unwanted TV browser advertisements pop up

If you are seeing unwanted advertisements now and then on your smart TV, chances are there that your smart TV has been attacked. It’s not a rare phenomenon for a malicious program to take advantage of a vulnerable browser. Small malware application programs are designed to riddle you with ads and redirect you to irrelevant landing pages while you are browsing your TV.

Menus move by themselves

Have you lost control over the navigation of menus? If the menus move randomly or open any destination on its own, it is possible that someone else has gained access to your smart TV navigation. It is undoubtedly possible to hack the network connection and perform a security breach to access your TV.

Apps open by themselves

Did you ever notice unknown apps that are all of a sudden existing on your TV? Or maybe known old apps open automatically and start functioning on their own by opening your gallery or playing a movie or music by going to Netflix without a prompt.

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Malfunctions like these might hint that a virus has affected your TV. Some embedded malicious apps may find space on your device if you have opened or downloaded any app from an unknown platform other than the official app store.

Unsolicited content pops up for no reason

Suppose you keep receiving fake virus warnings with content like many viruses detected, instant money requests, high-frequency alerts or some sort of irrelevant disclaimer with bad grammar. In that case, there’s a high probability that your device will get affected by a virus.

Audio and image quality drops

Did you notice a remarkable drop in the picture or audio quality? Maybe the frame rate is constantly dropping, or there is a lot of audio distortion while playing music or watching a movie. If this happens all of a sudden, there is a chance that malware has found its place on your device to take control over.   

But fear not; we have a list of preventive measures through which you can avoid such circumstances from occurring to you.

Preventive measures to safeguard your TV against virus attack

It is highly recommended to refrain from downloading apps from external repositories. Be assured of the applications that you want on your TV. Do not download any APK file extensions to avail yourself of free or easy streams or to play games, as these apps are usually highly deceptive.

Also, when your TV is not in use, it’s good practice to disconnect your internet. This defies the access of any malicious network and prevents security breaches. Last, but not least, check for regular app and system updates, and make no delay to download when they arrive.

Inspect your smart TV thoroughly to ensure its health and follow the above measures to ensure maximum protection of your smart TV.