Perseverant Monitoring: Google Maintains Track of You, Even through Other Users' Devices
In the digital age, the boundary between privacy and surveillance is becoming increasingly blurred. This article explores the latest developments in tracking technologies, focusing on WiFi-based sensing, ultrasonic audio beacons, and 5G-enabled heartbeat and pulse monitoring.
Facebook's research division has pioneered a new approach to sensing human movement, bypassing the need for cameras or microphones. Using only radio frequency signals and AI, this technology can interpret human movement, offering a potentially privacy-friendly alternative to traditional surveillance methods [1].
However, other tech giants like Google have faced criticism for their intrusive tracking practices. Their tracking ecosystem is integrated with voiceprint biometrics, 2FA device linking, IP addresses, and device IDs, creating persistent, cross-device identity profiles [2]. Google's voice assistants, for instance, create biometric voiceprints that uniquely identify users, even on other people's devices [3].
One concerning method of tracking is the use of ultrasonic audio beacons. These inaudible high-frequency sounds, emitted by one device, can be detected by other devices' microphones. When a device detects such a signal, it sends back data like the user’s IP address, location, phone number, IMEI, and MAC address to the tracking servers, enabling linking user activity across multiple devices [1].
Modern smartphones can also perform on-device AI analysis of camera input without streaming actual images or videos to external servers [4]. Researchers have demonstrated that by using multiple standard WiFi routers, advanced signal processing, and machine learning algorithms, it is possible to reconstruct a 3D image of a person's shape and pose through walls [5].
The movement and pose data gathered from WiFi sensing are funnelled into profiling systems run by major corporations like Google, enriching behavioral datasets that complement identity anchors such as 2FA devices, voiceprints, device IDs, and location data [6].
5G-enabled heartbeat and pulse monitoring can capture micro-movements of the chest or skin caused by cardiac activity with extraordinary precision. This technology is explored for continuous health monitoring and mood or stress analysis [7]. However, it raises significant privacy concerns as it allows intimate biometric data collection without explicit user consent or physical contact [8].
Google's surveillance extends to tracking users' voices not only on their devices but also on others' devices around them using cross-device tracking technologies [3]. Maintaining any meaningful privacy in normal living conditions is nearly impossible due to pervasive and covert surveillance [9].
Many employees within tech companies are conflicted about repurposing protective technologies into pervasive surveillance instruments [10]. Tools such as the Zero Trace Phone have been developed to protect privacy against such methods by blocking app sensor permissions and routing all traffic through anonymizing networks like Tor [1].
In summary, the rise of surveillance in modern technology presents significant privacy concerns. Technologies like ultrasonic audio beacons, WiFi-based sensing, and 5G-enabled heartbeat and pulse monitoring enable detailed user profiling and cross-device tracking without explicit user consent, forming part of modern targeted advertising and monitoring strategies [1][3]. As we navigate this digital age, it is crucial to be aware of these practices and take steps to protect our privacy.
References: [1] https://www.wired.com/story/google-tracking-ultrasonic-audio-privacy/ [2] https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/27/17157794/google-location-tracking-data-privacy-lawsuit [3] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/mar/02/google-tracking-your-voice-and-sending-it-to-strangers-phones [4] https://www.theverge.com/2019/6/6/18654154/google-pixel-4-face-unlock-camera-ai-privacy-concerns [5] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-46646-z [6] https://www.wired.com/story/google-facebook-wi-fi-sensing-privacy/ [7] https://www.technologyreview.com/s/614265/5g-could-let-smartphones-monitor-your-heartbeat/ [8] https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisasamuel/2020/04/02/5g-and-the-future-of-privacy-protection/?sh=614101025786 [9] https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/25/17384114/google-location-tracking-privacy-concerns-location-history [10] https://www.theverge.com/2019/10/1/82391039/google-employees-protest-project-maven-military-ai-drone-technology
- The development of privacy-friendly alternatives in healthcare technology, such as Facebook's radio frequency-based movement sensing, highlights the potential for technology to minimize conflict between privacy and surveillance in the digital age.
- Despite Google's criticism for intrusive tracking methods, their use of ultrasonic audio beacons and integration with voiceprint biometrics, 2FA device linking, IP addresses, and device IDs intensifies concerns about cybersecurity and data-and-cloud-computing in the realm of general news and politics.
- As modern technology advances, crime-and-justice issues arise due to pervasive surveillance, such as Google's tracking of users' voices on multiple devices without explicit consent, casting doubt on the attainability of meaningful privacy in everyday life.
- Tech workers grapple with ethical dilemmas surrounding the transformation of protective technologies into pervasive surveillance instruments, prompting the development of tools like the Zero Trace Phone to protect individual privacy in the face of advanced tracking technologies.
