Ordinary Wi-Fi Networks Can Identify People With Near-Perfect Accuracy

 Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) reported that ordinary Wi-Fi networks can identify individuals with nearly 100% accuracy using unencrypted signals routinely exchanged between routers and connected devices.

The findings were presented at the ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security in Taipei, according to a KIT release dated Aug. 12, 2026. The system identified people in tests involving 197 participants, regardless of viewing angle or walking style, the researchers said. The method requires no cameras, no specialized sensors and no connected device carried by the person being observed, according to the release.  

The widespread availability of Wi-Fi has raised surveillance concerns for years. The prevalence of Wi-Fi "has led to the development of innovative surveillance methods that are both ingenious and unsettling," according to NaturalNews.com, which reported in 2020 on techniques using Wi-Fi signals to map rooms behind walls and identify human targets...<<<Read More>>>...