New Research Project SynTrace: Using Movement Data Even More Securely
2026-10-21 How can we strengthen digital sovereignty and European data protection standards? The “SynTrace” research project is developing a sustainable foundation for data-driven business models.
More livable, sustainable, socially inclusive, and technologically advanced—that’s what smart cities stand for. But how does a city become “smart”? By collecting and analyzing data such as traffic volume, energy consumption, and air quality—and, in many cases, related personal and location data. This benefits citizens, government, and the environment—provided the data is handled responsibly. Businesses also rely on user data. Online services—whether from major players or small and medium-sized enterprises—can be optimized to target specific audiences and expand their reach. This, in turn, strengthens Germany’s position as a business hub in the face of international competition.
Making the use of such behavioral and movement data even more secure—that is the focus of the “SynTrace” collaborative project. After all, such a massive collection of data appears far less beneficial and trustworthy when a data breach occurs, as was the case with the VW incident that received widespread media coverage in late 2024. The most private location and personal data of approximately 800,000 vehicle owners was accessible on a foreign server for months. Since Germany, in particular, places a high value on data protection compared to other countries, the shock was correspondingly profound.
Anonymization and Synthesis of Movement Data
To counteract such leaks, the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space (BMBF) had already set “Digital. Secure. Sovereign,” set “Anonymization for Secure Data Use” as a goal. Since then, it has been funding cutting-edge research in IT security and privacy. This includes the collaborative project “SynTrace: Anonymization and Synthesis of Movement Data on the Web and in Smart Cities,” which was launched in early June of this year. The goal is to develop innovative, practical methods for the anonymized use and generation of mobility data that ensure both a high standard of data protection and sufficient data quality. This is a crucial undertaking for the economic and societal application of this data.
Launched by Leuphana University of Lüneburg and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, this project aims to strengthen digital sovereignty, consolidate European data protection standards, and create a sustainable foundation for data-driven business models through its research initiative. The research will be directly applied in practice, in cooperation with INFOnline GmbH and Urban Software Institute GmbH, which will serve as best-practice examples for other companies.
“SynTrace” thus builds on earlier research, particularly that of the BMBF-funded projects “SynthiClick” and “PROPOLIS,” and can therefore draw on proven methods and open-source artifacts. In terms of content, it focuses on the secure sharing of trajectories (the path of a data packet) by removing the link between individuals and the entities that collect and process data. This is achieved using the method of “differential privacy,” which involves the targeted “obfuscation” of data while simultaneously collecting relevant information. By combining this with generative AI models, realistic yet anonymous synthetic data is generated. Publicly available data is used to better model rare events and improve data quality.
The research conducted by ‘SynTrace’ could, in the future, enable access to high-quality, privacy-friendly trajectory data that is secure, legally compliant, and economically viable.
Prof. Dr. Ulf Brefeld