Cheap TV boxes may secretly click ads for fraud

You plug a streaming box into your television, connect it to Wi-Fi and settle in for a movie.

Meanwhile, that little device may have a completely different job running in the background.

Security researchers say some cheap Android TV boxes can secretly route outside traffic through a household's internet connection.

New research from Bitsight shows that some boxes may also pretend to be smartphones, visit AI-generated websites and click online ads.

The hidden activity can generate advertising revenue or turn the box into a residential proxy that lets strangers use your home internet connection .

Bitsight's latest findings reveal how organized and technically advanced one such operation may have become.

That inexpensive streaming box could cost you far more than its purchase price.

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BRINKS HOME DATA BREACH PUTS 1M CUSTOMERS ON ALERT Bitsight threat researcher Pedro Falé uncovered the operation while studying security risks involving cheap Android TV boxes.

His team found an expired domain that had previously managed factory backdoors on certain devices.