Exploring the effectiveness of geomasking techniques for protecting the geoprivacy of Twitter users

With the ubiquitous use of location-based services, large-scale individual-level location data has been widely collected through location-awareness devices. Geoprivacy concerns arise on the issues of user identity de-anonymization and location exposure. In this work, we investigate the effectiveness of geomasking techniques for protecting the geoprivacy of active Twitter users who frequently share geotagged tweets in their home and work locations. By analyzing over 38,000 geotagged tweets of 93 active Twitter users in three U.S. cities, the two-dimensional Gaussian masking technique with proper standard deviation settings is found to be more effective to protect user\u27s location privacy while sacrificing geospatial analytical resolution than the random perturbation masking method and the aggregation on traffic analysis zones. Furthermore, a three-dimensional theoretical framework considering privacy, analytics, and uncertainty factors simultaneously is proposed to assess geomasking techniques. Our research offers insights into geoprivacy concerns of social media users\u27 georeferenced data sharing for future development of location-based applications and services

Displaced Persons' Camp Siting and Conflict Prediction in the Sahel

Includes Figures, Equations, Appendices, Maps and Bibliography.Within the biogeographic region of the Sahel, approximately 4.9 million people are forcibly displaced as a result of environmental degradation, poverty and insecurity associated with terrorism and criminal organizations. As these forces of displacement proliferate, there are subsequent emerging vulnerable areas throughout this biogeographic zone. Our mission is to better prepare settlements for the arrival of displaced persons by identifying likely areas of displacement, and determine preferred site locations for the settlement of displaced populations