A new smartphone has sparked concern after an expert discovered the camera can be used to see through some objects.
YouTuber @purely_maxwell – whose real name is Maxwell Lu – raised the alarm after he unexpectedly realized he could see the batteries inside his TV remote when he held the CMF Phone 1 against it.
“We have a problem,” he said.
“At first glance, it appeared to be a low-resolution monochrome camera… well, that is until I accidentally held it against my TV remote.
“Damn… now we know the CMF Phone 1’s secret is a transparent camera. Not only does it work on my remote, but I’ve also tried placing items behind a black trash bag, a luggage divider, and a gray t-shirt.” “
Maxwell discovered the bizarre use of the bonus after becoming curious about what the second camera actually does and realizing there was no way to use it on its own.
After some technical interference, he was able to use a third-party camera port to change the camera and realized that it could see through objects.
Users reacted to the discovery with alarm, dubbing it the “X-ray” camera.
While users cannot access depth sensor output through the Nothing camera app, we understand this may raise some concerns
Akis EvangelidisCo-founder
“This is offensive technology and shouldn’t be there in the first place,” wrote one user on X after the video went viral.
“Even if it’s not in the default camera app, that’s what ruins the PRIVACY!” another commented.
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“Yes, there are people like you and me who will not misuse this resource, but think if this resource reaches the wrong person?”
The CMF Phone 1 is a new budget handset from growing smartphone company Nothing.
ACCESS DENIED
Since then, Nothing co-founder Akis Evangelidis has responded to X’s concerns, saying that the ability to access the camera with third-party apps will soon be blocked.
“In this case, although hundreds of millions of these camera depth sensors are available, a CMF Phone 1 user went further and accessed the depth sensor output through a third-party app in developer mode, obtaining a transparent view. effect,” he explained.
“Unlike typical cameras, our depth sensor does not have an infrared light filter, improving its light capture ability.
“By definition, this includes infrared light, which can sometimes reveal the internal structure of thin or semi-transparent objects, especially when it comes to black acrylic material.
“While users cannot access depth sensor output through the Nothing camera app, we understand this may raise some concerns.
“As a result, we will restrict third-party application access to the depth sensor output through a software update expected within a week.”
The CMF is not the first smartphone to have this problem.
OnePlus 8 Pro users previously noticed that the camera could also see through certain black plastics.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story