Scientists at Carnegie Mellon University are getting eerily good at using WiFi signals to “see” people through walls in unprecedented detail.
This technology is based on DensePose, a system developed by London-based researchers and Facebook’s AI team for mapping all pixels on the surface of a human body in an image. Using a deep neural network, researchers have been able to map WiFi signal’s phase and amplitude sent from routers into coordinates that correspond with human bodies in rooms. This technology means that without cameras or LiDAR hardware, scientists can detect people on another room and translate there movements into digital skeletons.
The researcher presents this development as a victory for people’s right to privacy since it protects individual’s private life and the required tools are not much expensive. They also stated that most households in developed countries already have Wi-Fi, so it would be simple to utilize this technology to keep tabs on the well-being of the elderly or spot any suspicious behavior among residents.
However, one must consider how far we should go when monitoring our own homes or other private spaces – what would constitute ‘suspicious behavior’ exactly? It would be wise not just to think about potential benefits but also potential drawbacks before allowing widespread use of this kind of surveillance tool within our personal lives!
In any case, with this technology making strides within the scientific community, it is only a matter of time before we see what other applications and implications arise from such powerful WiFi-enabled detection.
Stay tuned for more updates!
