Privacy

In today’s highly connected world in which data is so easy to collect, search, and transfer, privacy is of increasing importance. Unfortunately, the way most communication happens today - particularly over the Internet - is quite privacy unfriendly. When you send email, use instant messaging, or simply browse the world-wide web, information about you and your actions gets disseminated to diverse parties around the world, and you have little, if any, control over it.

With the widespread deployment of networked sensors and cameras throughout cities, there is an incredible opportunity for improving safety and security. Surveillance networks incorporate cameras mounted on traffic lights and overpasses, mobile cameras attached to emergency vehicles, and chemical and biological sensors for detecting dangerous contaminants. Surveillance networks can comprise several thousand sensors and cameras throughout a city.