Geotagging - bounswe/bounswe2023group7 GitHub Wiki

What is Geotagging?

Geotagging or GeoTagging refers to the process of adding geographical identification metadata, such as latitude and longitude coordinates, to various types of media such as photos, videos, or websites, SMS messages, QR code or RSS feed. This metadata can help to identify the location where the media was created or the location of the subject matter depicted in the media. Geotagged media can also include informations such as altitude, bearing, time-stamps or other contextual-informations. Geotagging can help users find a wide variety of location-specific information from a device. For instance, someone can find images taken near a given location by entering latitude and longitude coordinates into a suitable image search engine. Geotagging-enabled information services can also potentially be used to find location-based news, websites, or other resources. Geotagging can tell users the location of the content of a given picture or other media or the point of view, and conversely on some media platforms show media relevant to a given location.

Applications

  • Social Media: Apps like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook allow users to add location information to their posts, photos, or videos. This information can help users to discover content related to a particular location, event, or topic. They can also use geotagging to show ads based on a user's location. For example, a user browsing a social media app in a particular city may see ads for local businesses or events in that area.

  • Photos: There are two main options can be used to geotag photos: capturing GPS information at the time the photo is taken or "attaching" geocoordinates to the photograph after the picture is taken. These geotagged photos can be in used very different fields such as tourism, environmental research, urban planning, journalism, etc.

  • Geoblogging: Geoblogging attaches specific geographic location information to blog entries via geotags. Searching a list of blogs and pictures tagged using geotag technology allows users to select areas of specific interest to them on interactive maps. The progression of GPS technology, along with the development of various online applications, has fueled the popularity of such tagged blogging, and the combination of GPS phones and GSM localization, has led to the moblogging, where blog posts are tagged with exact position of the user. Real-time geotagging relays automatically geotagged media such as photos or video to be published and shared immediately.

  • HTML Pages: The GeoURL method requires the ICBM (plus optional Dublin Core metadata), which is used to geotag standard web pages in HTML format: <meta name="ICBM" content="50.167958, -97.133185"> The similar Geotag format allows the addition of place name and region tags: <meta name="geo.position" content="50.167958;-97.133185"> <meta name="geo.placename" content="Rockwood Rural Municipality, Manitoba, Canada"> <meta name="geo.region" content="ca-mb">

Possible Dangers

Geotagging has become increasingly popular with the widespread use of smartphones, which often embed location data into photos automatically. While geotagging can be useful in certain contexts, such as in tourism and environmental research, there are privacy implications that need to be addressed.

As a result, there has been a growing discussion around the potential dangers of geotagging, particularly in relation to privacy. Several scientific studies and websites have been developed to inform the public about these concerns.

One of the main issues with geotagging is that many users are not aware that their photos contain geotags. This can be particularly concerning when the photos are published on the internet, as they can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection. As a result, criminals may be able to track an individual's location and correlate it with other information to determine when they are not at home.

Celebrities have reportedly fallen victim to this, with their home locations being inadvertently revealed through photos posted online. This highlights the importance of being aware of the geotagging feature and taking steps to protect one's privacy.

Fortunately, there are ways to mitigate these risks. One solution is to use metadata removal tools to remove geotags from photos before sharing them online. This ensures that location data is not inadvertently shared, providing an additional layer of protection for individuals' privacy.