Webcam Hand Tracking Privacy in Gesture Synth

Camera Permission Starts with Your Action

The page can load its guide without activating the camera. Selecting Start creates the audio engine and asks the browser for getUserMedia video access. The browser controls the permission prompt and can remember an allow or block decision according to its own site settings.

If access is blocked, Gesture Synth cannot bypass that choice. Use the camera or site-controls icon beside the address bar to inspect permission, then reload only after changing it. A secure HTTPS page and an available camera device are still required.

Fix blocked or busy camera access →

Hand Landmarks Are Estimated in the Browser

The active video element feeds frames to a local MediaPipe hand model. The app reads estimated left and right hand landmarks, inference timing and tracking confidence to control degrees, harmony, volume, filter tone or continuous pitch. It does not need identity recognition to play the instrument.

Local processing means the gesture-analysis path runs on your device rather than sending webcam frames to GestureSynth.me for server-side detection. The model and application files still arrive through ordinary web requests, and the site can use standard analytics and advertising services described in the formal privacy policy; those services are not given camera frames by the instrument.

Preferences and Audio Exports Are Not Camera Recordings

The browser may keep limited local preferences such as the selected key, settings, tutorial completion and whether the sequencer is visible. This localStorage data describes interface choices, not a saved camera stream. Clearing site data removes those preferences but is not required after every session.

When you export a loop, Gesture Synth renders synthesized events from the step grid into WAV or a WebM fallback. The downloaded file contains generated audio only. It does not contain webcam video, microphone input or a cloud project copy.

Read how local WAV export works →

Stop the Session and Revoke Access When Needed

Choose Stop session to stop every active media track and close the AudioContext. The browser's camera indicator should then turn off. Closing the tab also ends page execution, but the visible Stop control gives immediate confirmation inside the instrument.

To prevent future starts without another decision, change the site's camera permission to Block or Ask in browser settings. On a shared device, also close the tab and clear local site data if you do not want interface preferences retained. Never send camera recordings, passwords or verification codes when requesting support.

You can verify the permission lifecycle without exposing a performance. Load the page and confirm that the browser shows no active-camera indicator before Start. Begin a session, check that the indicator appears while the preview and hand status are active, then choose Stop session and wait for the indicator to disappear. A browser may still display Camera: Allow in its remembered site settings after capture ends; that saved choice is different from an active media track. Set the permission back to Ask if you want a new browser prompt on the next visit. Clearing localStorage removes interface preferences, but it does not substitute for stopping a live track or changing the browser's camera permission. Repeat this check after a browser update if its permission indicator or site-control layout has changed.

Read the formal privacy policy → · Set up lighting without sharing footage →