The Digital Fingerprint You Had No Idea Is Attached to Every Photo You Take

The Digital Fingerprint You Had No Idea Is Attached to Every Photo You Take – Tyler Durden - https://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=4639 In a day and age where everyone is walking around carrying a portable GPS/supercomputer in their pockets, it should be of no surprise that location data can help track youat almost any given point in the day. But while this may be semi-expected, one way in which people may not know they're offering up information is through photographs. Such was the topic of a new BBC report, which delved into exactly how much information people are offering up with their photo metadata - the digital "fingerprint" that'sattached to every digital photo you take. Metadata became a national issue when comparisons of two photographs of former President Trump at Walter Reed Medical Center were scrutinized closely to try and determinewhether they were staged or not, BBC notes. Metadata also led to authorities being able to detain John McAfee in 2012, after a photograph's location data revealed he was in Guatemala at the time. This data "automatically and parasitically burrows itself into every photo you take," BBC notes. And while it's not impossible to get rid of, most people don't even realizethat it's there before widely sharing their photographs on social media. And while some platforms remove sensitive information, like where a photo was taken, others don't. The tool has become useful for police investigations, who often use it to place criminals at a scene. But the data can clearly be a slippery slope and be used for nefariouspurposes, as well. And as the BBC notes, it's not just the metadata hidden in your photos. They also contain a "unique personal identifier linking every image you capture to the specific cameraused". The report goes on to describe how unique imaging sensors are, and how that data is stored: To understand what this identifier is, you first have to understand how a photo is captured. Central to every digital camera, including those inside smartphones, is itsimaging sensor. This is composed of a grid of millions of silicon "photosites", which are cavities that absorb photons (light). Due to a phenomenon known as the photoelectric effect, the absorption of photons causes a photosite to eject electrons a bit likea nightclub bouncer. The different sensitivities of the photosites creates a type of imperceptible image watermark. Although unintentional, it acts like a fingerprint, unique to your camera'ssensor, which is imprinted onto every photo you take. Much like snowflakes, no two imaging sensors are alike. The good news, however, is that the data can also be used to help identify fake photographs. This can be helpful in a day and age where even deepfake video, let alone fakedphotographs, are starting to look flawless. VISIT: PROPHECY WATCHER WEEKLY NEWS: HTTP://PROPHECY-WATCHER-WEEKLY-NEWS.BLOGSPOT.COM