John- > Danny O'Brien of EFF pointed out this profile of Toby Oliver of Path > Intelligence, which uses GNU Radio to build phone-monitoring > networks for shops: > > http://www.cnet.com/8301-13505_1-9734052-16.html > > Toby Oliver, CEO of Path Intelligence, is based in Portsmouth, > England, where he and his wife, Sharon, have built a hugely > interesting (and innovative) product on top of the GNU Radio open > source project, key parts of which they've helped to fund.
Which parts of GNU radio were funded and/or developed by Mr. Oliver and his wife? -Jeff > The social impact is covered here: > > http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article3945496.ece > > (text below.) > > and here: > > > http://p10.hostingprod.com/@spyblog.org.uk/blog/2008/05/path-intelligence-phorm-for-shopping-centres.html > > (See the comments for pointers to patents and such.) > > > http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/12/14/path-intelligence-monitors-foot-traffic-in-retail-stores-by-pinging-peoples-phones/ > > Of course, though they say this data "isn't correlated" with any other > info, all it would take is recording what image is taken by the > security cameras when an identifiable mobile phone "walks by". And > with what charge card was used at the cash register when that same > phone is standing in front of it. And the license plate number (and > the RFID's in the tires) of the car that's going past when this mobile > phone passes your reader. Then you have the user's picture, name, > credit card info, car registration, and maybe tyre RFIDs; all without > the help of the mobile operator. > > Removing the battery from your mobile phone is going to get a lot more > popular, I expect. But at least we'll have free software tools for > monitoring what info it's leaking about you when the battery is in. > (How much of the Path Intelligence modules are in the main GR repository?) > > John > > Shops track customers via mobile phone > May 16, 2008 > > Customers in shopping centres are having their every move tracked > by a new type of surveillance that listens in on the whisperings of > their mobile phones. > > The technology can tell when people enter a shopping centre, what > stores they visit, how long they remain there, and what route they > take as they walked around. > > The device cannot access personal details about a person?s identity > or contacts, but privacy campaigners expressed concern about > potential intrusion should the data fall into the wrong hands. > > The surveillance mechanism works by monitoring the signals produced > by mobile handsets and then locating the phone by triangulation ? > measuring the phone?s distance from three receivers. > > It has already been installed in two shopping centres, including > Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth, and three more centres will begin using > it next month, Times Online has learnt. > > The company that makes the dishes, which measure 30cm (12 inches) > square and are placed on walls around the centre, said that they > were useful to centres that wanted to learn more about the way their > customers used the store. > > A shopping mall could, for example, find out that 10,000 people were > still in the store at 6pm, helping to make a case for longer opening > hours, or that a majority of customers who visited Gap also went to > Next, which could useful for marketing purposes. > > In the case of Gunwharf Quays, managers were surprised to discover > that an unusually high percentage of visitors were German - the > receivers can tell in which country each phone is registered - which > led to the management translating the instructions in the car park. > > The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) expressed cautious > approval of the technology, which does not identify the owner of the > phone but rather the handset's IMEI code - a unique number given to > every device so that the network can recognise it. > > But an ICO spokesman said, "we would be very worried if this > technology was used in connection with other systems that contain > personal information, if the intention was to provide more detailed > profiles about identifiable individuals and their shopping habits.? > > Only the phone network can match a handset's IMEI number to the > personal details of a customer. > > Path Intelligence, the Portsmouth-based company which developed > the technology, said its equipment was just a tool for market > research. "There's absolutely no way we can link the information we > gather back to the individual,? a spokeswoman said. ?There's nothing > personal in the data." > > Liberty, the campaign group, said that although the data do not > meet the legal definition of ?personal information?, it "had the > potential" to identify particular individuals' shopping habits by > referencing information held by the phone networks. > > The receivers together cost about �20,000 to rent per month. About 20 > the units, which are unobtrusive, cream-coloured boxes about the size > of a satellite dish, would be needed to cover the Bluewater shopping > centre. > > Bluewater, in Kent, said it had no plans to deploy the equipment. A > spokesman for Gunwharf Quays was not available for comment. > > Owners of large buildings currently have to rely on manual surveys > to find out how customers use the space, which can be relevant to > questions of design such as where the toilets should be located or > which stores should be placed next to one another. > > Other types of wireless technology, such as wi-fi and Bluetooth, can > be used to locate devices, but the regular phone network signal is > preferable because it is much more powerful and fewer receivers are > needed to monitor a given area. > > Phone networks have long been capable of gauging the rough location > of a handset using three phone masts, but the margin error can be as > great as 2km. The process is also less efficient when the phone is > indoors. Path Intelligence's technology can tell where a phone is to > "within a couple of metres." > > "You're basically going to know that that person has been in > Starbucks," Toby Oliver, the company's chief technology officer, > said. > > Even when the owner is not using it, a mobile phone makes contact > with the network every couple of minutes, which is enough for the > receivers to get a reading on its position. > > _______________________________________________ > Discuss-gnuradio mailing list > Discuss-gnuradio@gnu.org > http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss-gnuradio _______________________________________________ Discuss-gnuradio mailing list Discuss-gnuradio@gnu.org http://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss-gnuradio