In an era where technology increasingly blurs the lines between convenience and privacy intrusion, Rice University researchers are pioneering a revolutionary approach to biometric privacy protection. Their recent breakthrough study introduces MetaHeart, a cutting-edge metasurface device designed to disrupt radar-based heart rate monitoring technologies. This innovation addresses growing concerns about covert biometric tracking and the potential misuse of sensitive physiological data in everyday environments.
Modern high-frequency sensing systems, particularly millimeter-wave radars operating at frequencies such as 77 gigahertz, have found their way into numerous consumer and workplace devices. These radars possess the remarkable ability to detect fine physiological signals including heartbeats and breathing patterns without any direct physical contact. While initially deployed to enhance security protocols or health monitoring, these technologies inadvertently open a gateway for unauthorized surveillance. Employers, for example, might exploit such sensing systems embedded in workstations to continuously monitor employees’ heart rates, cognitive engagement, stress levels, and alertness, thereby eroding personal privacy under the guise of productivity enhancement.
Rice University researchers elucidated the alarming ramifications of such pervasive biometric sensing through an evocative experimental scenario. They depicted two individuals: Alice, the unsuspecting target, and Trudy, a malicious intruder wielding a millimeter-wave radar. Trudy’s radar can accurately ascertain Alice’s presence and infer intimate details about her physiological and emotional states by tracking fluctuations in her heart rate. This fabricated vignette underscores how unregulated access to biometric signals can be weaponized for surveillance and covert monitoring with exceptional precision.
In response to these threats, the research team, led by graduate student Dora Zivanovic under the supervision of Edward Knightly, developed the MetaHeart system. This metasurface-based device ingeniously camouflages biometric signals by manipulating the electromagnetic waves that radars rely upon to extract physiological information. Unlike software obfuscation techniques that operate post-data acquisition, MetaHeart operates directly at the physical interaction layer, reflecting radar signals with engineered interference patterns that emulate fabricated heartbeat rhythms.
The programmable metasurface is composed of an array of minuscule elements whose reflection properties can be dynamically altered. By controlling the phase and amplitude of the reflected radar waves, MetaHeart crafts deceptive biometric signals. This capability enables users not only to mask their real heartbeats but also to project entirely false physiological profiles. In laboratory tests, MetaHeart’s spoofing performance achieved astounding efficacy, fooling radar inferences with over 98% accuracy. The device could even simulate a person’s presence in an empty space, presenting fabricated cardiac rhythms to deceive intrusive monitoring systems.
This innovation marks a paradigm shift in biometric privacy defense. Traditionally, combating radar sensing vulnerabilities necessitated limiting device capabilities or restricting deployment contexts. MetaHeart, however, empowers individuals to reclaim agency by making radar-based heart rate monitoring unreliable through physical signal-level deception. This strategy has profound implications for securing personal spaces in an environment where sensing technologies grow ever more precise and omnipresent.
The technical foundation of MetaHeart resides in metamaterials—a class of engineered materials structured on the subwavelength scale to achieve electromagnetic properties unattainable in natural substances. By leveraging metasurfaces, the researchers harness fine-grained control over microwave reflection, enabling programmable responses custom-tailored to evade radar interrogation techniques. This advancement extends metamaterial applications beyond conventional optics or antenna design, showcasing their utility in privacy engineering.
As sensing radars become ubiquitous in smartphones, laptops, smart home devices, and wearables, safeguarding biometric information becomes paramount. The ability to remotely infer stress, fatigue, emotional state, or presence from heart rate fluctuations invites ethical dilemmas surrounding surveillance, consent, and information misuse. MetaHeart exemplifies proactive technological countermeasures that anticipate and mitigate these privacy threats without compromising device functionality or user convenience.
Researchers emphasize that developing counter-surveillance technologies like MetaHeart contributes to a broader conversation about ethical sensing and digital rights. Knightly notes that as radar sensing resolution advances, interdisciplinary efforts integrating electromagnetics, materials science, and privacy law must converge to establish frameworks protecting individual autonomy. MetaHeart lays a foundation upon which future innovations can construct robust defenses against covert biometric exploitation.
The study received extensive support from notable institutions including the Army Research Office, Intel, Cisco, the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Department of Energy, highlighting cross-sector interest in addressing emerging technology challenges. The research is detailed in the peer-reviewed journal Computer Communications, underscoring the rigor and impact of this experimental work within the engineering community.
In a world where biometric data has become the new frontier of personal information, MetaHeart represents a formidable line of defense, reshaping the architecture of privacy in the digital age. By enabling users to scramble and spoof their heartbeat signals at the electromagnetic wave level, this innovation disrupts unauthorized physiological surveillance, offering a blueprint for future technologies aimed at harmonizing sensing capabilities with respect for individual privacy boundaries.
Subject of Research: Biometric privacy protection using metasurface technology to spoof radar-based heart rate monitoring.
Article Title: MetaHeart: Metasurface enabled biometrics camouflage
News Publication Date: 1-February-2026
Web References: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.comcom.2025.108405
Image Credits: Rice University
Keywords: Radar, Remote sensing, Heart rate, Biometrics, Metamaterials
