The Future of Privacy Forum, a major organisation advocating privacy and data protection, unveiled a new data flow infographic on the top use cases for technologies employed in extended reality (XR).
The new data aims to educate lawmakers, public policy experts, and industry regulators on how numerous XR technologies operate along with potential data privacy risks.
FPF releases a #NEW infographic showcasing how #XR data flows work. It provides valuable insight on #immersivetech use cases, the use of sensors, #data processing, #dataprotection issues & more!
View the infographic to learn more: https://t.co/f0zaO8nbw1 pic.twitter.com/RRBlARtZUw
— Future of Privacy Forum (@futureofprivacy) October 27, 2022
The findings also explore the “interplay” of sensors, data volumes, and machine learning (ML)-based algorithms and automated systems deployed for shared experiences, avatars, and other use cases.
Daniel Berrick, Policy Counsel at the FPF and infographic co-author, explained that XR tech often required information about pupil dilation and gaze to function, but that organisations could use the data to create assumptions on “sexual orientation, age, gender, race, and health.”
Such decisions could potentially negatively impact user lives, “underscoring the importance of use limitations to mitigate risks,” he added.
Breakdown of Infographic Analysis
According to figures, the infographic revealed several key issues concerning the use of XR technologies.
Sensors may undermine user anonymity by tracking body movements, mapping motions in physical environments, and digital fingerprinting. This can allow third parties to identify users and spark concerns over de-identifying and anonymising. People may avoid using XR technologies due to concerns over joining activities and self-expression, leading to groups potentially blacklisting them.
Legal protections for biometrics depend on privacy regulator definitions, such as Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).
Jameson Spivack, Senior Policy Analyst of Immersive Technologies for the FPF and Infographic Co-Author, added,
“BIPA applies to information based on ‘scans’ of hand or face geometry, retinas or irises, and voiceprints, and does not explicitly cover the collection of behavioral characteristics or eye tracking”
The Push for XR Best Practices
The FPF, a Washington, DC-based organisation with offices in Belgium, Singapore, and Israel, aims to unite experts across the XR industry to discuss current and future challenges over data and privacy rights and for the sector. It also works directly with governments and key organisations to outline best practices in the US and other key global sectors with collaboration and insights from research.
Sister organisations include the XR Association, one of the world’s top institutions for developing best practices for XR based in Capitol Hill, which has recently worked with US lawmakers to support the passing of the CHIPS Act in September.
The XRA lauded the bill as a “watershed moment”, allowing millions in funding access to emerging technologies, including XR, blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), and other key tech solutions.
The organisation also hosts some of the world’s biggest tech companies, including Meta Platforms, HTC VIVE, Accenture, Google, Microsoft and many others.
Other key groups include the 35-member Metaverse Standards Forum (MSF), which rallies global members of the tech community to develop standards protocols for the Metaverse, the future of communications which combines spatial computing and the Internet.
