Raytheon Develops Big Data 'Security' Tool

US defence technology contractor Raytheon has developed a tool which it claims can model the future behavior of social media users, while tracking their physical movements.

Gathering content from sites such as Facebook and Twitter, the solution, known as RIOT (rapid information overlay technology), has been developed as part of a US government and industry joint R&D project.

Images posted by social media users often contain location details embedded by smartphones, and RIOT is able to use these details to uncover where the photos were taken. In addition, the system analyzes GPS information from mobile phone app Foursquare, which is used by more than 25 million people to alert friends of their whereabouts.

Through a spider diagram, RIOT highlights the associations and relationships between individuals online, by examining who they are communicating with on Twitter.

UK newspaper the Guardian has received a video demonstrating the technique, which shows a Raytheon employee called Nick being 'modeled', based on where he used his smartphone, his log-in times, and the location of his online photographs.

A Raytheon spokesperson described RIOT as a big data analytics system which will help turn massive amounts of data into usable information to help meet the world's 'rapidly changing security needs'.

Even though the tool doesn't disclose personally identifiable information, such as social security numbers, bank or other financial account information, Nick Pickles, Director of privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, says that the technology had raised concerns about how data can be collected without regulation.

'People have been sharing large information about themselves on social networks without knowing the consequences of it. Now companies are looking at how to join the dots. I wouldn't be surprised if the government and companies in Britain are looking at using it,' he adds.

Web site: www.raytheon.com .