AI Can Identify Where Photos Were Taken Within Seconds, Raising Privacy Concerns

With the year-end and New Year holidays approaching, many people are likely to share photos from trips or visits back home on social media. However, experts warn that using AI, it is now possible to identify a person’s location or movements with surprising accuracy.

“By feeding past photos and comments into AI, it can quickly determine where someone lives or where they might be found,” said Ken Ogiso, a visiting researcher at GLOCOM, part of International University of Japan. “It can do this in a very short amount of time.”

So how exactly does AI identify locations from photos?

In one demonstration, a selfie taken by a program staff member was analyzed by AI. Although the background appeared mostly nondescript, the system correctly identified the location as Kenrokuen Garden in Kanazawa within seconds.

“Even small details, like a bamboo fence in the foreground, became clues,” said newscaster Asako Hibi. “It’s not just famous landmarks—the AI picks up subtle features.”

The technology’s capabilities go even further. In another test, a photo taken near the National Diet Building in Tokyo was analyzed. Even when the building itself was barely visible, the AI was able to determine the exact area.

“It correctly identified the front of the Diet building,” Hibi said. “It matched the gate design and even recognized surrounding buildings in the distance.”

The same applies indoors. In one example, a photo taken inside the TBS Broadcasting Center allowed the AI to narrow down the location to a specific floor, based on visible buildings and roof structures seen through a window.

IT journalist Hiroshi Mikami explained that Google’s AI is particularly adept at this kind of analysis. “Google has access to enormous amounts of location-based data through Street View and user-submitted photos. That makes its location identification extremely accurate,” he said.

While such technology can be useful in emergencies—for example, helping rescuers locate people during disasters—it also carries serious risks if misused. Photos shared online can expose where a person lives, works, or is currently staying.

Experts are urging users to be more cautious when taking and posting photos, especially on social media, as AI continues to evolve and become more powerful at extracting hidden information from everyday images.

Source: TBS