How To Disconnect The Internet From Smart Tv? 4 Ways

Unfortunately, most smart TVs feature an automated content recognition system that collects information on what you watch and supplies them to marketers. This occurs whether you are using an old VHS tape or watching OTA TV. After enabling this feature, whether by default or after you enable the feature unknowingly, the smart television will track your watching habits by capturing audio snippets and video sections and uploading the information to a “listening post.”

If your TV connects to your network through Ethernet, unplug the cable to disconnect. Otherwise, if it has connected wirelessly, make it forget the WIFI network and its login details. Resetting the television to factory default also prompts the TV to forget the present network.

Although disconnecting your TV from the internet isn’t an ideal solution since it renders its smart functionality useless, it is worth the sacrifice since it guarantees privacy.

However, if you seemingly can’t stand doing away with the smart functionality, consider looking for other ways to help prevent your device from tracking and sharing your information.

This includes turning off all the privacy-invasive features in your TV. Below are some tested ways to help you disconnect the internet from a smart TV.

How To Disconnect The Internet From Smart Tv?

With the many privacy risks posed when using smart TVs, users should take extra caution to ensure that information security is not breached. Thus, it would be best if you considered limiting internet access on your smart TVs. Here is how to do that.

Disconnecting The Ethernet Or Wifi Cable

Although this is the most seamless way of blocking internet access on your device, it is not fully efficient. Anyone else can connect the TV through a mobile hotspot or tethering.

Set Up Parental Control

With parental control, you can toggle various security settings on your device. This way, you can set your desired security level, which restricts web browsing and covers all applications. Since your primary goal is to restrict access to the internet, consider setting all internet-related activities to deny or block access.

However, remember that to set any parental control, you require a security code from your manufacturer. Contact your brand’s manufacturer for the default security code.

Log Into The Router’s Control Panel And Block Your TV.

First, log into your router using its IP address. After accessing the control panel, you require your TV’s IP address to include in the router’s blacklist. Although this is a more complicated approach, it still does the job of keeping your smart TV disconnected from your WIFI connection.

Start A Power Cycle

By any means, powering off the TV should help stop it from accessing the internet.

Thus, holding the power button down for a few minutes to start a power cycle should make the device forget the WIFI login details stored in its temporary memory.

This is all you have to do to ensure that your TV breaks from its Wi-Fi connection.

Unlike a factory reset, the power cycle only eliminates temporary memory such as the last volume you had set or the TV show you were watching. On the other hand, system reset forgets all your previous settings such as streaming service login details, new apps, and other passwords.

How Do I Disconnect My Smart Tv From The Internet? (Popular brands)

ROKU Smart TV

By connecting it once to WIFI, your Roku TV will remember the WI-FI login details and connect automatically in the future without even prompting you. However, you can have the device forget your WIFI login details in order to disconnect it from your WIFI.

Although the process is quite straightforward, finding the option to forget the details requires a little digging. To locate, select the HOME button on the remote, which takes you to the home screen.

You’ll find the SETTINGS option and press OK to select on the left side of the screen. This will open up Roku TV’s settings.

While on the Settings screen, navigate to SYSTEM then to ADVANCED SYSTEM SETTINGS, and finally to NETWORK CONNECTION RESET.

Upon selecting the Reset Connection option, your device will reboot, thus forgetting its network details. Afterward, your ROKU smart TV will not have its network-connected features.

Vizio TV

Claims from FTC suggest that Vizio TV illegally tracked the watching habits of its users and later sold that information to advertisers. Thus, if you are using a Vizio smart TV, it would be best to immediately disconnect it from the internet.

To further support the claim, through a court ruling, the company had to pay a $2,200,000 fine to settle charges on how it used to spy on owners using the TV’s smart features.

Also, part of the settlement required Vizio to delete all the collected information and to place measures to inform TV owners and viewers about the information they will collect. Here are the instructions for disconnecting Vizio’s smart interactivity feature.

· Press the menu button on the Vizio remote

· Using the top and bottom Arrow buttons on the remote, highlight on SYSTEM and press OK

· Choose RESET & ADMIN and confirm by pressing the OK button

· Select the option that allows you to reset the TV to factory defaults and confirm.

· Input the parental code when prompted. The default parental code is usually 0000, which should work if you didn’t reset the code manually.

· Select RESET and confirm

· Give the TV some time before it powers off.

SAMSUNG TV

You can easily disconnect a Samsung Smart TV’S WIFI access through the television’s WIFI configuration. To do so:

· Use the remote control to find the network setup depending on the menu functions and model of the TV.

· Choose the Search for Network option and click on Set Up Network.

· After it completes searching for wireless networks, select “ADD NETWORK” and enter a non-existing name on the prompt. This name should be one that does not appear in the WIFI selection list.

· Afterward, select OPEN to check for security type. This will prompt the TV to search for the network you named but will not connect. However, the TV will still retain the settings even when powered off.

· Once it completes the configuration, the TV should display a 0.0.0.0 network address for all fields, after which you should turn it off. The next time the TV powers back, it will search for the spurious name you entered, making the WIFI shut off by default if it fails to locate the network.

SONY BRAVIA TV

A more seamless way not to have the smart functions in most SONY TVs is not connecting it to any internet network. This includes not plugging an Ethernet cable and not connecting it to your WIFI.

If you already have it connected but wish to disconnect it, changing your WIFI password should do the trick.

Since changing the WIFI password will also disconnect all your other WIFI-enabled devices, consider changing the password temporarily to avoid having to reconnect the devices. Connect your Sony TV using the new password, and change the login details to the old one.

This will result in the TV disconnecting, and it will ask you to enter the password. Skip this step, and you will be good to go.

LG Smart TV

Most LG models allow you to disable WIFI on the higher end. Following the steps below will help you disconnect your LG TV from the internet.

· Select the home screen menu on your LG remote and tap the Apps icon.

· Navigate for SETTINGS options on the Apps tab.

· From the SETTINGS tab, select WIFI. Afterward, locate the WIFI switch (probably in the upper right corner of the screen) and enable it.

· Highlight and select the connected WIFI network.

· Tap on the FORGET option to forget the network. The TV will disconnect from the WIFI

TCL Smart TV

The following steps apply only to TCL Android 8.

· From the TV’s home screen, use your remote to select the SETTINGS option on the upper right corner of the TV.

· Select the NETWORK option

· With your remote, navigate and select the connected WIFI network.

· Navigate to the Forget Network option and press OK.

· Next, unplug your router from the power source and wait for up to three minutes before plugging the power cord and restarting it.

· Similarly, unplug your TV from the power source and give it about three minutes. Once restarted, skip the WIFI page to keep it disconnected from the internet.

Hisense TV

Using your remote, find and select the menu option. Next, locate the Settings option and tap on it. Search for Wireless Settings within the drop-down menu and select to locate the ON/Off toggle.

Turn the settings to Off to disconnect your Hisense TV from the internet.

Skyworth Smart TV

Skyworth TV allows you to disconnect the internet connection through the VIA Plus interface. To access the interface:

· Use the menu button on the remote.

· Locate the Settings option and select the SYSTEM sub-menu, where you will find the smart interactivity option.

· Select to turn it off, and the TV will have no internet access.

Sharp TV

Like other TVs, the Sharp smart TV has wireless controls located in the main menu. To access the menu, tap the home button on the TV’s remote control and navigate settings.

The next step is to search for built-in WIFI and turn it off to disable the WIFI internet connection.

Bruhm Smart TV

To disconnect a Bruhm television, disconnect it from the power source and turn off the router. Next, hold the power button on your TV for about five seconds before plugging it to power and switching it on.

After switching it on, it will prompt you to input the WIFI password.

Instead of logging into your internet, skip this step and turn your router back on. This should work provided you don’t log back into the internet.

Conclusion

Many other brands of Smart TVs have the same processes for disconnecting WIFI. If you can’t see your TV brand on this list, just go to the menu option and search for any wireless network connection setup.

Finally, locate the on/off toggle switch that will enable you to disconnect the function. Thus, your device will operate like traditional TVs.