Forum Discussion

DCwebman's avatar
DCwebman
Channel Surfer
12 months ago

How did my Roku turn on by itself, select an app, and play a movie?

I woke up in the middle of the night last night and discovered my TV was on playing a movie. I know I left it on Hulu and then turned the TV off. The movie was playing from the app Vix which I didn't know I had installed and it was in Spanish. I went back to the Roku home and my theme had changed from the factory defaults to SpongeBob SquarePants. I have no idea how the TV got turned back on from the Roku, went to the Vix app, started playing a movie, and even changed the Roku theme. I could not tell when it had started but the movie was Titanic and it was about in the middle so I would guess it had been going for 1.5 hours.

I did change my Roku password then, but I don't know what good it will do because you can't log out of your Roku account and have to do a factory reset instead. If by chance another Roku device had my logged in account, it seems like they would still be able to do things.

How could this happen? Was I hacked and someone had fun changing my apps and Roku theme?

This was on the Roku Express 4K+ (model 3941X).

screensaver & theme
tv & player features

7 Replies

  • DCwebman's avatar
    DCwebman
    Channel Surfer
    12 months ago

    Apparently when the Roku screensaver turns on, Vix is currently one of those apps/movies that can get played by pressing the Play button. I saw it today with Titanic and pressed the Play button. It installed the Vix app and went to directly start playing the movie.

    So, that explains how the app got installed and a movie started. But the Play button needed to be pressed and I'm the only one in my house. And it doesn't explain how the screensaver got changed to SpongeBob SquarePants.

  • RokuEmmanuel-D's avatar
    RokuEmmanuel-D
    Community Moderator
    12 months ago

    Thanks for posting here in the Roku Community, DCwebman.

    We see that you're experiencing odd behavior with your Roku Express 4K+. We are here to investigate and take a closer look at it.

    For us to determine the root cause of the impending problem with your Roku, we need some additional information for better visibility:

    • When did this issue first occur?
    • Did you receive any recent software updates? If so, kindly let us know the latest software of your device by navigating to Settings > System > Power > About.
    • Have you noticed any odd behavior with your remote lately? To isolate the problem, please remove the batteries of your Roku remote and observe if the problem persists.
    • Is your Roku connected to a Roku mobile app? If yes, try disconnecting the app.
    • Please provide a short video clip of what you're seeing for reference.

    In the meantime, try rebooting your Roku device by going to Settings > System > Power > System restart (If you can't find an option for Power, you can skip it).

    Please keep us posted for more updates.

    All the best,
    Emman

    • DCwebman's avatar
      DCwebman
      Channel Surfer
      12 months ago

      1. It first happened during the night of July 13.
      2. It says it was last checked 7/15 and last updated 5/14. 13.0.0.24056 is there now.
      3. I have not seen any problems with the remote.
      4. It was connected to the Roku app. I disconnected it.
      5. I can't provide a video clip. I described what I experienced in the middle of the night when the TV came on and a movie on Vix started playing. Plus the Roku theme was changed.

      The Roku was rebooted that night after I changed my password online and I was hoping to see I had to login again.

      • atc98092's avatar
        atc98092
        Community Streaming Expert
        12 months ago
        DCwebman wrote:

        The Roku was rebooted that night after I changed my password online and I was hoping to see I had to login again.

        Roku devices are not logged into an account. They are linked during initial setup, so there's no passwords involved to use the device. In fact, you cannot log a device out of your account. You must do a factory reset on the device and then remove it from your user account using the web site. The individual apps/channels that do require authentication can be logged in/out, but not the device itself.

        The CEC functionality of your Roku is likely what turned the TV on. While many people appreciate the functionality, you can turn it off in the Roku Settings menu. It's labeled One-touch play.