You may already know that the built-in mic in the PS5 DualSense has caused some people to feel concern about potential privacy issues with the controller. Now, a patent has raised new privacy concerns about PS5 DualSense. But this time the technology in question is not a microphone. Let’s take a look at the patent and what it might mean.
What Are the New Privacy Concerns About PS5 DualSense?
You can take a look at the patent here. The text describes, “A system for identifying a user of a controller includes a controller having one or more sensors configured to detect interaction with the controller by the user and a transmitter configured to transmit telemetry data based on outputs of one or more of the sensors… providing a method and an apparatus for determining an identity of a user holding a handheld controller.”
It is easy to understand why some users feel that this technology poses privacy concerns about PS5 DualSense. Being able to be identified by a PS5 controller sounds like something which could be exploited.
But this technology’s purpose is to protect privacy. The patent explains, “It has become increasingly common for users to be able to login to the same user account as they use on their own console when playing on a different console … However, to log in to their account a user is often required to enter a password which may be seen by other users. Moreover, once a user has entered their password, a situation arises where the user remains logged into their account unless the user subsequently performs a lot out operation, which can result in other user’s potentially obtaining access to the user’s profile.”
Basically, by sensing and logging users in and out automatically, the PS5 DualSense would prevent the need for entering passwords. Do the benefits outweigh the concerns? Time will tell. We also still don’t know for sure if this feature will be part of the controller or not. We’ll keep you posted in our PlayStation news.