Data stored to identify the faces of more than a billion people will be deleted, the online network announced on Tuesday. There are concerns in the community about the use of facial recognition technologies – and regulators are still in the process of developing rules for it, it has been said to justify this.
Recently, users had to give their explicit consent for their Facebook friends to have their name automatically appear in the photos. In Europe in particular, the internet with facial recognition technology has faced resistance from data custodians.
She said Facebook sees other potential uses for this technology, for example to log into an account or unlock a device. Work on this will continue – with due transparency for users. Face recognition can also be useful for identification in financial services. Among other things, Facebook is working on a digital wallet for the digital currency Diem developed by the group, which was originally known as Libra.
Facebook confirmed that with the functionality set, the names in previous photos will no longer be shown. Nothing will change for users who have not activated the function, since the facial recognition data will not have to be deleted.
The function has already caused problems for Facebook several times. The company paid more than half a billion dollars last year to settle a lawsuit in the US state of Illinois. The country has had a law since 2008 that prohibits the collection of biometric data without the consent of those involved. Prosecutors accused Facebook of violating it by creating profiles to recognize faces in photos.
The proliferation of face recognition technology has been seen increasingly in recent years. Clearview AI also contributed, compiling a huge database based on publicly available images from online networks and services like Instagram. According to its own information, Clearview AI only provides its services to the police and other security authorities. However, their methods of collecting data have raised concerns about the uncontrolled spread of the technology. Facebook and other services are trying to put a stop to bulk photo downloads. However, companies like Clearview have repeatedly managed to circumvent the procedures.
Facebook whistleblowers concerned about Zuckerberg’s plans for ‘Metaverse’
Facebook whistleblower Francis Haugen is concerned about Mark Zuckerberg’s plans to direct the internet giant into the virtual world of “Metaverse”. “Personally, the idea scares me of bringing more microphones and sensors from Facebook into our homes and offices and spying on them while we have no idea how they use the data,” Haugen told the German press on Wednesday.
Facebook has repeatedly shown that the company cannot be trusted and that public statements do not match developments in the group. Haugen specifically confirmed that Facebook wanted to offer devices like virtual reality glasses that could represent virtual reality at cost. “They want to make it impossible for others to compete with them on an equal footing because Facebook can burn money to get into their heads.”
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and president of Facebook, recently announced the group’s renaming to Meta in order to emphasize the focus on the “Metaverse” as the future of digital communications.
The former Facebook employee Haugen has downloaded a large trove of internal documents and made them available to the US Congress, select authorities and media. According to her, the information shows that the group puts profits above the welfare of its users. Internal signals of developments harmful to users have been ignored. Facebook rejects these allegations.
Haugen welcomed the Internet’s current decision to crush the facial recognition function. “I think this shows how important it is that we take a tough stance on Facebook’s actions,” she said. “Because if we come together and demand reasonable things, we can make progress.”
Meta stock gained 0.38 percent at times on the Nasdaq to $329.32.
Menlo Park / Berlin (dpa-AFX)
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