Interaction / privacy awareness
2024
Manual case study
Data Fragments
An interactive installation that turns fragmented social media data into a playable experience, revealing how seemingly harmless digital traces can reconstruct personal identities.
12 weeks
Research & Interaction Design
& Physical Prototype
Methods
Interviews
Field Research
Stakerholder Mapping
Journey Mapping
Service Blueprint
Tools
Arduino
Processing
Python
Illustrator
As social media becomes part of everyday life, personal information is constantly generated across different platforms. Although individual posts may seem insignificant, these fragmented traces can be combined to reveal detailed personal identities.
This project explores how invisible information leakage can be experienced rather than simply explained.
267 million
Facebook users had been stolen
I conducted desk research and user interviews to understand how people perceive online privacy.
While most participants recognised that social media collects personal information, very few understood how fragmented data from multiple platforms could be combined into comprehensive personal profiles.
Many users underestimated the value of seemingly ordinary information.
Personally identifiable information such as names, contact details and identification numbers can directly expose an individual's identity and increase the risk of identity theft..
Addresses, IP locations and workplace information reveal where people live, work and travel, making physical tracking and targeted attacks possible.
Messages, call logs and interaction histories reveal social relationships and daily routines beyond the content people intentionally share.
Browsing habits, hobbies and online preferences reveal personalities, beliefs and behavioural patterns, enabling highly personalised profiling.
Shopping history and purchasing behaviour reveal lifestyle preferences and spending habits, enriching the overall user profile.
Privacy is rarely exposed through a single piece of information. Instead, identity emerges gradually as fragmented data from different sources is connected together
The project uses Tetris as a metaphor for fragmented personal information.
Each block represents a small piece of data collected from different social media platforms. Individually these fragments appear meaningless, but once assembled they gradually reconstruct a complete identity.
The familiar gameplay allows users to experience an abstract privacy issue through physical interaction.
Design Concept
Interactive Experience
Players interact with a physical arcade machine by placing coloured Tetris blocks.
Each completed line reveals hidden keywords collected from social media profiles. As more information appears, a fragmented portrait gradually becomes a complete human face.
The installation transforms invisible data collection into an engaging and memorable experience.
