Social Engineering Blogs

An Aggregator for Blogs About Social Engineering and Related Fields

Facial Expression of Emotions Recognition in Real Time – Really ?

Omron, a Japanese automation company, has just developed technology that can detect six of the seven universal facial expressions of emotion (happiness, disgust, sadness, fear, surprise, and anger) in real time.

They already have software, “OKAO Vision”  that is currently used in the auto focus of digital cameras & smart phones.

In a past blog, we reported on this type of technology, which made its appearance in the video game L.A. Noire , which used motion scan technology to capture actors’ facial expressions from all angles.  This can now be upgraded to reflect your facial expressions and use them to create a personalized avatar reacting and responding realistically and in real time in various interactive video games.

 RTT News  reports that this new technology combines the company’s 3D model-fitting technology and its statistical classification method to estimate facial expressions based on the relative position of all facial parts.  The company also claims that the technology is capable of high-speed estimation that requires very little system memory.

Gamers everywhere rejoice technology is bringing many of you what you’ve always wanted…Realistic interactive software that puts you (at least your facial expressions)  in the Game.

 What do you think about this software?  Is it really realistic and in real time? Or does technology still need to perfect this software?
Let the Humintell Community know!

The Smell of Fear – New Research

We all know that babies learn about the people and world around them from watching and imitating what they see.  Well, apparently we continue this into adulthood.

A new study from researchers at Utrecht University finds that we can smell fear and disgust and when we do it can trigger the same emotion in our brains.  The study’s findings can be found in the journal Psychological Science.

The New York Daily News reports that this isn’t the first research to claim that humans can smell fear.  So how did they find this information out? 

Researchers tested the sweaty armpits of 10 men while they watched films such as The Shining or gross-out scenes from MTV’s television series Jackass.

They then asked 36 women to take a visual search test that recorded their facial expressions and eye movements as they inhaled  chemosignals of the men’s sweat.  So what did the researchers find? 

When sniffing the “fear sweat,” the women opened their eyes widely in a fearful expression.  When smelling sweat from men who were disgusted, the women grimaced as if in disgust.

 So Science is pointing to the fact that we are all connected and we affect the people around us in ways we did not previously know.  

So next time your in a crowded post office, waiting for important news in a room full of people, or in a classroom filled with rambunctious middle schoolers, try to calm yourself and bare a smile no matter how slight.

 Remember other’s can SMELL FEAR and it’s contagious !

Follow up: Truth Teller or Liar?

Several people have commented on the Truth Teller or Liar blog we posted last week regarding a man named “Tony” who claims he was not the person seen in a photo who vandalized a San Francisco muni bus after the Giants won the World Series.

We asked blog readers to analyze the video that was posted and get their thoughts on why (or why not) they thought Tony was telling the truth or lying.

Several people made good observations stating that Tony “is proud and happy being the center of attention” and that he “clearly enjoys the situation”.  This is clearly evident by his frequent smiles and seemingly relaxed attitude. Tony seems to be a jokester of sorts; the clip points out how he posted comments like “it’s me lol” about the situation through social media outlets.

One thing is for sure: it is difficult to tell whether Tony is lying or telling the truth from just this one two minute clip. Is this how Tony normally behaves? Does he frequently smile when asked tough questions? What’s his baseline? It’s important to know the answers to these questions before coming to a conclusion that there may be more to the story than what’s being told.

The answer? Tony was indeed telling the truth.

He did not vandalize the muni bus as police arrested Gregory Tyler Graniss, 22, of San Francisco after the now infamous picture was circulated around the internet. Graniss has admitted that the person in the picture is him and is currently out on $40,000 bail.

Don’t be discouraged if you got this one wrong- it was a challenging one.

Our tip: if you want to improve your ability to detect deception, continue to practice, practice, practice. Take a look at this past blog with more links to videos.