Meta is reintroducing facial recognition technology to its apps over three years after shutting down Facebook’s “face recognition” system amidst backlash against the technology. The social network will now deploy facial recognition tools on Facebook and Instagram to combat scams and aid users who have lost account access. The initial test will focus on identifying scam ads featuring public figures, using facial recognition to compare faces in the ads against the public figure’s profiles. Meta plans to expand this feature to more users in the coming weeks, allowing individuals to opt out if desired. Additionally, Meta is testing facial recognition for account recovery, using video selfies to match users with their profile photos to prevent unauthorized access. While the company assures immediate deletion of facial data used for comparisons and optional participation, privacy advocates may raise concerns given Meta’s history with facial recognition technology. Notably, the new tools will be unavailable initially in Illinois, Texas, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, with plans to potentially enable global use by 2025.
