Guthula to Present Research on Virtual Reality Privacy at Student Expo
The University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s Student Research and Creative Works Expo will showcase a wide range of innovative projects on April 18, including a unique study on privacy in virtual reality (VR) by graduate student Jayasri Sai Nikitha Guthula.
Guthula, a Master of Science in Computer Science student and a researcher at UA Little Rock’s Emerging Analytics Center, will present her research titled “Preserving Privacy in VR Telemetry Data,” which explores how user movements in VR can inadvertently reveal personal information, even when data is anonymized. Her research was advised by Dr. Arya Basu, assistant professor of computer science, and Dr. Jan P. Springer, director of the Emerging Analytics Center.
“In VR, every user has unique movement patterns,” she said. “Even if we remove personal identifiers, a person’s hand motion, speed, and style can still be used to trace them. In some cases, we can even infer physical characteristics like height, gait, or potential health conditions. No one wants their personal health information out in the public.”
To address this issue, Guthula developed a privacy-preserving framework designed to prevent user re-identification while still allowing researchers to gather necessary data to improve VR experiences. Her work uses advanced techniques such as Wasserstein Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) with Gradient Penalty and Differentially Private Stochastic Gradient Descent, which introduce controlled noise to protect user identities without compromising the integrity of the research.
Guthula first presented her research at the 32nd Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) International Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces, held March 8-12 in Saint-Malo, France. She found the experience invaluable, gaining feedback from international experts and expanding her professional network.
Guthula plans to continue developing privacy solutions in VR as she pursues a Ph.D. at UA Little Rock after she graduates in May. Her next goal is to implement privacy-preserving measures in real time, ensuring that users’ data remains secure while they interact within immersive environments.
The Student Research and Creative Works Expo will feature projects from students across multiple disciplines, providing a platform to highlight groundbreaking research and creative achievements. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 12-4 p.m. at the Jack Stephens Center.