NPR Podcast Recap: Think Internet Data Mining Goes Too Far? Then You Won't Like This

At the University of Washington, researchers are going beyond general fear regarding the mass surveillance programs of data collection - particularly of the collection of personal data. These researchers are taking on the fear of brain spying that has entered the world in light of new brain scanning software developments that have emerged recently. Companies as well as average individuals with a few extra hundred dollars lying around now have access to brain scanners - technically referred to as brain computer interfaces - that are a window into someone's mind. These brain scanners are essentially headgear that senses electrical patterns in the brain, and translates that message to provide an analysis of someone's emotions or state of mind. It can be used, for example, with video games. Thus, Howard Chizeck of the University of Washington and his team of researchers scrambled to congregated and are now trying to prevent this technology from falling into the hands of greedy businessmen who could use it to manipulate people into buying their products. The researchers conducted an experiment to display how this manipulation would work by using the sensor on someone while they played a video game that featured pop up ads. The gamer's reactions to the ads recorded by the sensor allows insight as to what the gamer likes. This is a tactic that business owners could use to target people with advertisements suited to the gamer's taste. Hopefully, Chizeck can prevent the concept of brain spying from full-on attacking the people of the world.