Wi-Fi, Cell Towers May Soon Be Spying on You Without Your Consent

Wireless radiation could be used to surveil people without their knowledge or consent, even if they aren’t wearing a “smart” device or holding a cellphone, according to the authors of a new study.

by Suzanne Burdick, Ph.D.

Wireless radiation could be used to surveil people without their knowledge or consent, even if they aren’t wearing a “smart” device or holding a cellphone, according to the authors of a new study.

The study authors — engineering faculty members with the Institute for Systems and Computer Engineering, Technology and Science at the University of Porto, Portugal — posted their report Jan. 24 on the Cornell University open-access research website, arXiv.

The study showcases hardware the authors designed that leveraged ambient wireless radiofrequency (RF) radiation to detect and render a visual image of human activity — such as waving a hand or a person’s breathing rate — with over 90% accuracy.

Their design involved a thin programmable surface — a Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) — that communicates with computers and artificial intelligence (AI).

RIS can manipulate and steer Wi-Fi signals in controlled ways, explained Fariha Husain, manager of Children’s Health Defense’s (CHD) Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR) & Wireless Program. “By adjusting how radio waves reflect off this surface, the researchers were able to enhance signal-sensitivity and improve their ability to detect subtle human movements.”

Husain said:

“RIS panels can be strategically placed to optimize wireless signal reflection and steering and may take any shape or be integrated into objects. Indoors, they can be mounted on walls, ceilings or furniture.

“Outdoors and in urban areas, they can be installed on offices, airports, shopping centers, lampposts and advertising billboards. Additionally, RIS panels will enable smart city surveillance by tracking pedestrian and vehicle movement.”

RIS hasn’t been incorporated into current wireless networks — but it’s in the works for 6G, according to W. Scott McCollough, chief litigator for CHD’s EMR & Wireless cases.

“Future 6G networks will have RIS functionality built in,” he said, “and it would not surprise me if they don’t implement RIS in the future 5G updates.”

Proponents of RIS say it will help with automation and monitoring healthcare patients. “But several industry and government reports on 6G straight-up say they want to use these capabilities for surveillance,” McCollough said.

Husain said the technology poses “dangerous implications for mass surveillance, personal privacy and data security.”

McCullough agreed, noting that the study authors are engineers, not ethicists. “Their job is to figure out how to make things work, usually without much thought about the ethical implications of the machines they build.”

The Defender asked the study authors to comment on the privacy implications of their research but did not receive a response by the deadline.

McCollough said he’s been speaking out against this kind of technology for a long time.

Although the study author’s particular design is novel, the idea that RF radiation can be used through RIS technology to surveil people isn’t new, McCollough said.

McCollough added:

“Think radar or sonar (which uses sounds) … It’s about following the waves as they go outward from the transmitter and seeing when they bounce, get slowed down or get absorbed. You can, with sufficient computing power, draw a 3D image of what is inside the beam and then proceed to identify it.”

Technology can be used ‘even when individuals are uncooperative’

For the study, the authors did a series of experiments with their RIS hardware design involving large datasets. The experiments showed the design was highly effective at sensing three different hand gestures — even when the person gesturing was obstructed by a wall or object.

According to their report:

“This capability allows the system to focus electromagnetic fields on selected body parts while minimizing interference from the surrounding environment and enables the system to distinguish between various hand signs and monitor vital signs, such as respiration, even when individuals are uncooperative or positioned behind obstacles.”

The authors said their research advances “the state of the art on RF based solutions for Human Activity Recognition (HAR), specifically within the context of emergent sixth generation communications.”

They are making their design available as open-source to accelerate research.

Similar technology already on the market

Husain said the technology behind the study authors’ design is similar to Origin AI, a technology already on the market.

“Origin is a commercial Wi-Fi sensing technology developed by former DARPA [Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency] contractor Ray Liu that can localize motion with over 90% accuracy and even capture breathing patterns,” she said.

Origin AI advertises its technology will “make your home smarter, safer, and more secure.” Its website states:

“With ORIGIN AI … your ISP or security company transforms smart devices into advanced virtual sensors, creating an intelligent home ecosystem to enhance security, connectivity, and convenience.”

In a 2022 interview, Liu explained the evolution of the technology:

“We first realized we could perform precise indoor positioning, then we realized we could detect whether a door was closed or open. Soon after, we found that we could sense a person through the wall by establishing the world’s first radio biometrics.

“From there, the applications snowballed — we could pick up breathing, monitor sleeping, detect a fall, recognize gait patterns, and even pick up sound without a microphone.”

Related Articles in The Defender

• New FCC Labeling Scheme Won’t Keep ‘Smart’ Devices From Spying on You, Critics Say

• CHD Scores Win in ‘Smart City’ Lawsuit as Court Orders Los Angeles to Turn Over Documents

• Critics Warn of ‘a Dragnet of Surveillance’ as U.S. Pushes Ahead With Plans for More ‘Smart’ Cities

• U.S. Launches ‘One Health’ Plan Prompting Concerns About Global Power Play