Do you allow your phone to automatically change its screen backlight? Maybe it’s not a good idea

We often worry about whether our mobile phone is working. listen to our conversations. It’s interesting because we have concerns about this that there’s no evidence for, but we’re not afraid to accept all kinds of consent regarding our private information. Putting that aside, according to a group of scientists from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), yes, we should pay a little more attention to the permissions we provide to use device lighting as this may be the future way spying using a mobile phone.

They demonstrated it AI which replicates what hackers could do. In this case, the automatic lighting of the phone is used as a kind of pattern for the user’s movements. Thus, scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology even managed to obtain a complete silhouette of the hand.

But this is not the worst thing, logically. Touchscreen motion tracking can be used to obtain important information. This will be a very specialized form of cell phone surveillance, but it should be in future. Despite having the most advanced technology, MIT’s AI took a long time to acquire information, so it would not be sufficient to collect all the necessary data. However, this is a wake-up call for the public to take a close look at what tools on their phone they give permission for automatic use.

Mobile spying through lighting

Typically, if we have given permission to automatic configurationlighting on smartphones is adjusted depending on ambient light. That is, the screen lights up more or less depending on the light level of the environment.

Doesn’t happen the way it does camera or microphone, for which the user’s permission is always requested. In this case, this does not seem necessary since it would be impossible to use lighting as a method of surveillance using a mobile phone. Or not?

MIT scientists conducted several experiments after developing their AI, which are reported in a study published in the journal Science achievements. First, they placed a mannequin in front of a tablet screen. They then placed a cutout on the screen in the shape of a hand or a human hand itself. interacting with her.

Managed to install x-ray these interactions. Therefore, this can be a method of mobile spying.

There’s good news

The good news is that MIT’s AI took approx. 3.3 minutes to restore one frame. Therefore, it will be very difficult for hackers to save all the user’s movements.

This means that for this method to actually be a sufficiently effective method of mobile spying, access to much faster devices will be required. We are saved for now. But having demonstrated all that can be achieved, we should consider deny mobile permissions for automatic use of lighting. It will be much better if we adjust it to our needs. So, when the hackers are ready, we will be ready too.