FAQ

No, turning off a device will not guarantee that wi-fi and Bluetooth signals will not be broadcast. This means your device may still be detected even if you turn them off and some devices (e.g. medical devices) cannot or should not be turned off.

The signals are generally unidentifiable, but in a small number of cases may include distinctive or identifiable address characteristics (e.g. ‘grantmuller wifi’). The signal addresses may also be randomised in many cases and completely unidentifiable.

Identifiable data will be removed when the data is uploaded into the LASER datastore.

The wi-fi and Bluetooth signal data which is collected by the McMatcher devices will be uploaded directly into the University of Leeds LASER datastore. LASER is a cloud-based Trusted Research Environment (TRE) that provides a secure environment for researchers to store, handle, process and analyse sensitive and confidential data.

The platform is DSPT and ISO27001 accredited and supports AI and machine learning focussed research, at the University of Leeds, with end-to-end support from the in-house Data Analytics Team.

When the data is uploaded to LASER it will be anonymised and analysed at aggregate level. Only members of the University of Leeds research team and the LASER DAT team will have access to the data. Reports containing aggregate and anonymised data will be output from LASER after checking for compliance by the DAT. These will be sufficiently de-sensitised to allow sharing with external collaborator(s), any other project partners, and/or for academic publication.

We will keep the data for 15 years, after which it will be deleted.

We will use the data to understand how people move around complex building and building complex environments. The information can help to improve urban design, crowd management, public health, accessibility and safety.

No, we will not be able to detect your device if you turn Wi-fi and Bluetooth off. If you need help doing this then visit our Opting out page.

The rationale and aims of each study may be different from each other. If you click you can navigate to the study you are interested in via the Research page, the aims of each study are written in the 'Experimental aims' section.

Visit our opting-out page which describes all the ways to ensure your data is not collected.

We will use the data to understand how people move around complex building and building complex environments. The information can help to improve urban design, crowd management, public health, accessibility and safety.

It will not be possible to remove your data from the study after you have left the area the McMatcher devices are sensing in. This is because it will be impossible to know which signals are from your devices and which are from other peoples devices. If you wish to opt-out you will need to follow the instructions on the opting out page.

You can contact us at [email protected].

Each study has been approved by the University of Leeds ethical approval system. If you click you can navigate to the study you are interested in via the Research page then you will find the specific approval of each study are written in the 'Ethics' section.

Each study has been funded by different organisations. If you navigate to the study you are interested in via the Research page, the funders of each study are written in the 'Funding' section.