Getmewhere: A Location-Based Privacy-Preserving Information Service

Abstract

Mobile users have got used to getting useful information while they are literally on the move. An implication of this habit is that certain live information, such as that for navigation, for dating and for handling emergencies, should be tailored to the user's current location. While this is technically feasible with the current technology, it raises concerns on the user's location privacy. To address the delicate tradeoff between user's location privacy and appropriateness of the information for that location, this paper discusses three information delivery protocols. One is the widely adopted Android's protocol, the other two are the authors' novel ones, termed AL protocol and LBPP protocol respectively. The former conceals the user's location within a geographical area, the latter employs secure two-party computation. Privacy of all protocols is analysed, motivating the choice to implement the LBPP protocol. It is made available as the "Getmewhere" service for the reader to download.