Heads up, smart home. New privacy camera stops vacuum cleaners from spying on you

Engineers at the University of Michigan have developed a unique PrivacyLens camera that prevents the collection and distribution of private photos and videos from devices such as smart home cameras and robotic vacuums.

PrivacyLens combines a regular camera with a thermal imager to detect people by body temperature. The system replaces the face image with an animated figure that mimics the person's movements. This allows devices to operate without revealing the user's identity.

The technology addresses the problem of leaking private moments on the Internet through camera-equipped devices. In 2020, there was an incident where a photo of a woman in the bathroom ended up on Facebook through an iRobot Roomba robot vacuum.

Alanson Sample, co-author of the study, emphasizes the importance of data protection: "A smart device that removes personal information before sending data to servers will be much safer than current analogs."

Developers hope that PrivacyLens will encourage patients to use cameras for home health monitoring. Yasha Iravanchi, a project doctoral student, explains: "Cameras provide valuable information for health monitoring, but it creates an ethical dilemma. Our device allows for collecting medical data while preserving privacy."

A survey showed that replacing images of people with figures enhances user comfort when using home cameras. The system has privacy settings that allow controlling the level of censorship of the face and body.

PrivacyLens can be used not only for home health monitoring but also in public places. Autonomous vehicle manufacturers may use this technology to prevent turning transportation into surveillance devices.

The research results were published in the Proceedings on Privacy Enhancing Technologies journal.

Source: Techxplore