YouTube Now Lets Uploaders Blur Literally Anything They Want

Using recently developed technology, the new tool allows users to blur any object as it moves around throughout the clip.

February 26, 2016

YouTube has finally expanded upon its previously limited blurring tool by incorporating the ability to blur moving objects, the company announced on Thursday. "In 2012, we launched the ability for creators to blur all faces in their video as a first step toward providing visual anonymity tools on YouTube," Amanda Conway, YouTube’s Privacy Lead, said in a statement. "Even then we knew we still had work to do: you didn’t just want to blur faces—you wanted to blur literally anything in your video."

This new Custom Blurring, now available to uploaders everywhere, is easily accessed by simply selecting the video one wants to toss some blur on and then selecting Custom Blurring, which is of course located under the Blurring Effects tab in Enhancements. Using technology that YouTube describes as "new" and "innovative," the tool is able to accurately analyze the motion of any given object as it careens through a video.

As Amanda Conway notes, this greatly expanded version of the Custom Blurring tool is another potential game-changer in the creative field but also in the protection of "sensitive information" for citizens who happen to capture a potentially dire moment on film. "YouTube is proud to be a platform where people around the world come to share their stories," Conway adds, "whether it’s the first time a loved one learned how to ride a bike, or a first-hand recording of an important human rights issue."

Let the blurring begin.