Meta Platforms Inc. (META.O) announced on Tuesday that it is resuming trials of its facial recognition technology on Facebook, three years after discontinuing the service due to privacy concerns and regulatory pressures. This new initiative aims to combat “celebrity bait” scams that exploit the likenesses of public figures to deceive users.
In this trial, Meta plans to enroll approximately 50,000 public figures, automatically comparing their profile photos with images used in suspected scam advertisements. If a match is found and the company suspects fraudulent activity, it will block the offending ads. The enrolled celebrities will be notified and can choose to opt out of the program.
The global rollout of this trial is scheduled for December, although it will exclude regions like the United Kingdom, the European Union, South Korea, and the U.S. states of Texas and Illinois, where Meta lacks regulatory approval.
Monika Bickert, Meta’s vice president of content policy, explained that the initiative aims to protect public figures whose images have been misappropriated in scam ads. “We want to offer as much protection as possible,” Bickert stated. “They can opt out if they choose, but we want to make this protection accessible and straightforward.”
This move underscores Meta’s efforts to navigate the complex landscape of using invasive technology to address the rising prevalence of online scams while minimizing criticism regarding user data management. When Meta shut down its facial recognition system in 2021, it deleted the biometric data of one billion users, citing “growing societal concerns.” Earlier this year, the company was ordered to pay $1.4 billion to Texas over a lawsuit alleging illegal biometric data collection.
Meta is also facing lawsuits that accuse the company of inadequately addressing celebrity bait scams, which utilize AI-generated images of famous individuals to lure victims into fictitious investment schemes. Under the new trial, any facial data generated during comparisons will be immediately deleted, regardless of whether a scam is confirmed.
Bickert assured that the tool undergoing testing has passed a “robust privacy and risk review process,” both internally and in consultation with external regulators, policymakers, and privacy experts.
In addition, Meta plans to explore the use of facial recognition data to help non-celebrity users on Facebook and Instagram regain access to accounts compromised by hackers or locked due to forgotten passwords.
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