The ‘Big' reason why you must carefully read Facebook and Instagram's terms and conditions
After years of training its
generative AI
models on billions of public images from
Facebook
and
Instagram
,
Meta
is reportedly seeking access to billions of photos users haven't publicly uploaded, sparking fresh
privacy
debates. While the social media giant explicitly states it is not currently training its AI models on these private photos, the company has declined to clarify whether it might do so in the future or what rights it will hold over these images, a report has said.
The new initiative, first reported by TechCrunch on Friday (June 27) sees Facebook users encountering pop-up messages when attempting to post to Stories. These prompts ask users to opt into "cloud processing," which would allow Facebook to "select media from your camera roll and upload it to our cloud on a regular basis."
The stated purpose is to generate "ideas like collages, recaps, AI restyling or themes like birthdays or graduations."
The report notes that by agreeing to this feature, users also consent to Meta's AI terms, which permit the analysis of "media and facial features" from these unpublished photos, alongside metadata like creation dates and the presence of other people or objects. Users also grant Meta the right to "retain and use" this personal information.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Free P2,000 GCash eGift
UnionBank Credit Card
Apply Now
Undo
Meta used public, not private, data train its generative AI models
According to The Verge, Meta recently acknowledged that it used data from all public content published on Facebook and Instagram since 2007 to train its generative AI models. Although the company stated it only used public posts from adult users over 18, it has remained vague about the precise definition of 'public' and what constituted an 'adult user' in 2007.
Meta public affairs manager , Ryan Daniels, has reiterated to the publication that this new 'cloud processing' feature is not currently used for training its AI models, a, told The Verge,
"[The story by the publication] implies we are currently training our AI models with these photos, which we aren't. This test doesn't use people's photos to improve or train our AI models," Maria Cubeta, a Meta comms manager, was quoted as saying.
Cubeta also described the feature as 'very early,' innocuous, and entirely opt-in, stating, "Camera roll media may be used to improve these suggestions, but are not used to improve AI models in this test."
Furthermore, while Meta also said that opting in grants permission to retrieve only 30 days' worth of camera roll data at a time, Meta's own terms suggest some data retention may be longer.
'Camera roll suggestions based on themes, such as pets, weddings and graduations, may include media that is older than 30 days,' Meta's says.
Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold After 1 Year: Is It STILL My Daily Driver? (Long-Term Review)
AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
Tech industry group sues Arkansas over new social media laws
A tech industry trade group sued Arkansas Friday over two new laws that would place limits on content on social media platforms and would allow parents of children who died by suicide to sue over content on the platforms. The lawsuit by NetChoice filed in federal court in Fayetteville, Arkansas, comes months after a federal judge struck down a state law requiring parental consent before minors can create new social media accounts. The new laws were signed by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders earlier this year. 'Despite the overwhelming consensus that laws like the Social Media Safety Act are unconstitutional, Arkansas elected to respond to this Court's decision not by repealing the provisions that it held unconstitutional but by instead doubling down on its overreach,' NetChoice said in its lawsuit. Arkansas is among several states that have been enacting restrictions on social media, prompted by concerns about the impact on children's mental health. NetChoice — whose members include TikTok, Facebook parent Meta, and the social platform X — challenged Arkansas' 2023 age-verification law for social media. A federal judge who initially blocked the law struck it down in March. Similar laws have been blocked by judges in Florida and Georgia. A spokesperson for Attorney General Tim Griffin said his office was reviewing the latest complaint and looked forward to defending the law. One of the new laws being challenged prohibits social media platforms from using a design, algorithm or feature it 'knows or should have known through the exercise of reasonable care' would cause a user to end their life, purchase a controlled substance, develop an eating disorder, develop an addiction to the platform. The lawsuit said that provision is unconstitutionally vague and doesn't offer guidance on how to determine which content would violate those restrictions, and the suit notes it would restrict content for both adults and minors. The suit questions whether songs that mention drugs, such as Afroman's 'Because I Got High,' would be prohibited under the new law. The law being challenged also would allow parents whose children have died by suicide or attempted to take their lives to sue social media companies if they were exposed to content promoting or advancing self-harm and suicide. The companies could face civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation. NetChoice is also challenging another law that attempts to expand Arkansas' blocked restrictions on social media companies. That measure would require social media platforms to ensure minors don't receive notifications between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. The measure also would require social media companies to ensure their platform 'does not engage in practices to evoke any addiction or compulsive behavior.' The suit argues that the law doesn't explain how to comply with that restriction and is so broadly written that it's unclear what kind of posts or material would violate it. 'What is 'addictive' to some minors may not be addictive to others. Does allowing teens to share photos with each other evoke addiction?' the lawsuit said. Those in distress or having suicidal tendencies can seek help and counselling by calling these helplines.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Meta spending big on AI talent but will it pay off?
Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills Mark Zuckerberg and Meta are spending billions of dollars for top talent to make up ground in the generative artificial intelligence race, sparking doubt about the wisdom of the boss Sam Altman recently lamented that Meta has offered $100 million bonuses to engineers who jump to Zuckerberg's ship, where hefty salaries await.A few OpenAI employees have reportedly taken Meta up on the offer, joining Scale AI founder and former chief executive Alexandr Wang at the Menlo Park-based tech paid more than $14 billion for a 49 percent stake in Scale AI in mid-June, bringing Wang on board as part of the AI labels data to better train AI models for businesses, governments and labs."Meta has finalized our strategic partnership and investment in Scale AI," a Meta spokesperson told AFP."As part of this, we will deepen the work we do together producing data for AI models and Alexandr Wang will join Meta to work on our superintelligence efforts."US media outlets have reported that Meta's recruitment effort has also targeted OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever; Google rival Perplexity AI, and hot AI video startup chief Zuckerberg is reported to have sounded the charge himself due to worries Meta is lagging rivals in the generative AI latest version of Meta AI model Llama finished behind its heavyweight rivals in code writing rankings at an LM Arena platform that lets users evaluate the is integrating recruits into a new team dedicated to developing "superintelligence," or AI that outperforms people when it comes to thinking and blogger Zvi Moshowitz felt Zuckerberg had to do something about the situation, expecting Meta to succeed in attracting hot talent but questioning how well it will pay off."There are some extreme downsides to going pure mercenary... and being a company with products no one wants to work on," Moshowitz told AFP."I don't expect it to work, but I suppose Llama will suck less."While Meta's share price is nearing a new high with the overall value of the company approaching $2 trillion, some investors have started to investors are concerned about how well Meta is managing its cash flow and reserves, according to Baird strategist Ted Mortonson."Right now, there are no checks and balances" with Zuckerberg free to do as he wishes running Meta, Mortonson potential for Meta to cash in by using AI to rev its lucrative online advertising machine has strong appeal but "people have a real big concern about spending," said executives have laid out a vision of using AI to streamline the ad process from easy creation to smarter targeting, bypassing creative agencies and providing a turnkey solution to talent hires are a long-term investment unlikely to impact Meta's profitability in the immediate future, according to CFRA analyst Angelo Zino."But still, you need those people on board now and to invest aggressively to be ready for that phase" of generative AI, Zino to The New York Times, Zuckerberg is considering shifting away from Meta's Llama, perhaps even using competing AI models State University professor Mehmet Canayaz sees potential for Meta to succeed with AI agents tailored to specific tasks at its platform, not requiring the best large language model."Even firms without the most advanced LLMs, like Meta, can succeed as long as their models perform well within their specific market segment," Canayaz said.
NDTV
2 hours ago
- NDTV
US Canada Resume Trade Talks Days After Trump Ended It Over Tax On Tech Firms
Toronto: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said late Sunday trade talks with US have resumed after Canada rescinded its plan to tax US technology firms. US President Donald Trump said Friday that was suspending trade talks with Canada over its plans to continue with its tax on technology firms, which he called "a direct and blatant attack on our country." The Canadian government says "in anticipation" of a trade deal "Canada would rescind" the Digital Services Tax. The tax was set to go into effect Monday. Carney's office said Carney and Trump have agreed to resume negotiations. "Today's announcement will support a resumption of negotiations toward the July 21, 2025, timeline set out at this month's G7 Leaders' Summit in Kananaskis," Carney said in a statement. Carney visited Trump in May at the White House, where he was polite but firm. Trump traveled to Canada for the G7 summit in Alberta, where Carney said that Canada and the US had set a 30-day deadline for trade talks. Trump, in a post on his social media network last Friday, said Canada had informed the US that it was sticking to its plan to impose the digital services tax, which applies to Canadian and foreign businesses that engage with online users in Canada. The digital services tax was due to hit companies including Amazon, Google, Meta, Uber and Airbnb with a 3% levy on revenue from Canadian users. It would have applied retroactively, leaving U.S. companies with a $2 billion US bill due at the end of the month. Trump's announcement Friday was the latest swerve in the trade war he's launched since taking office for a second term in January. Progress with Canada has been a roller coaster, starting with the US president poking at the nation's northern neighbor and repeatedly suggesting it would be absorbed as a US state. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
