Unencrypted Wi-Fi Signals Could Turn Everyday Routers Into Near-Perfect Person Trackers
Scientists have shown that standard Wi-Fi routers can capture unencrypted signals to create radio-based images that identify individuals with almost 100% accuracy, even when they carry no device.
A team of scientists discovered that ordinary Wi-Fi routers can exploit unencrypted beamforming feedback to generate radio-based images of nearby individuals, achieving identification accuracy close to 100% in a trial of 197 subjects. The method works without any active device on the person, relying solely on signals emitted by legitimate network users in settings such as homes, offices, and cafés. Researchers highlighted the risk that millions of routers could collectively form an invisible surveillance network capable of tracking people without their knowledge.
Professor Thorsten Strufe described the technology as powerful yet threatening to fundamental privacy rights, while co-researcher Julian Todt warned that frequent visitors to Wi-Fi-enabled venues could be recognized unnoticed. The investigators are calling for new privacy protections to be built into upcoming Wi-Fi protocols before widespread deployment. Their findings suggest that both corporations and governments could potentially exploit this capability for mass monitoring.
Why it matters
The technique could enable covert, large-scale tracking of individuals through everyday Wi-Fi, challenging privacy protections.
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