As part of a new pilot program to see how many people are using New York City parks, the NYC Parks Department is installing specialized tracking benches from Soofa that anonymously detect phones that are in the vicinity. According to the Soofa privacy policy for the NYC Parks Pilot Project:
Soofa observes the information being sent by mobile devices, including the device’s MAC address, manufacturer, and signal strength. After receiving the non-identifiable data sent by mobile devices, Soofa applies a cryptographic function to the MAC addresses to further anonymize them.
Aside from its true purpose of tracking phones, the benches also provide USB charging ports that are powered by solar panels. Currently, there are only five benches installed in only one park in the City: Highbridge Park in Washington Heights.
via reddit
Matt Coneybeare
Editor in Chief
Matt enjoys exploring the City's with his partner and son. He is an avid marathon runner, and spends most of his time eating, running, and working on cool stuff.
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