Why you should be worried about facial-recognition technology. It could be time for you to start worrying about what Facebook might be doing with the identity information collected on you and "tagged" photos.
The Hamburg Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information in Germany has announced legal action against the company and charged that Facebook's use of facial-recognition technology is illegal. In addition, the Federation of German Consumer Organizations is ordering Facebook to stop giving third-party applications users' data without their consent. If the social network doesn't do this by Sept. 4, the FGCO will sue. Earlier this month, Norway also announced that it is looking into the legality of the social network's use of face-matching technology.
Unlike the United States, Germany has regulations that allow Internet users control over their data. Facebook: facial recognition profiles without user consent Franken stated that any law-enforcement gains from the program could come at a high cost to civil liberties. Germany re-opens Facebook facial recognition probe. German privacy regulator re-opens investigation into Facebook facial recognition feature. The Hamburg data protection authority has re-opened its investigation into the issue and called on Facebook to delete the biometric data it has collected of its users through the use of automated facial recognition technology.
It said the social network must obtain users' opt-in consent before compiling information about users through the use of the feature, according to a report by the New York Times. Facebook uses automated facial recognition technology to suggest to users the identity of other members of the site when they feature in pictures the users are uploading to the social network. Those users can choose to 'tag' those individuals based on the suggestions, meaning the pictures are labelled with pop-up captions to enable people who view the photos to identify who is in the shot by hovering their mouse over the picture. Under the EU's Data Protection Directive personal data can only be processed under strict conditions.
Germany Reopens Investigation of Facebook’s Photo Archiving. Hamburg Office of Data Protection and Freedom of Information The issue has “grave implications for personal data,” said Johannes Caspar, a commissioner in Hamburg.
The data protection commissioner in Hamburg, Johannes Caspar, suspended the inquiry in June, but said he reopened it after attempts to persuade Facebook to change its policies had failed. “We have met repeatedly with Facebook but have not been able to get their cooperation on this issue, which has grave implications for personal data,” Mr. Caspar said in an interview. The company’s use of analytic software to compile photographic archives of human faces, based on photos uploaded by Facebook’s members, has been problematic in Europe, where data protection laws require people to give their explicit consent to the practice. Instead of using such an opt-in system, Facebook requires them to opt out instead. Mr. In their meetings, Facebook representatives acknowledged that the company was compiling biometric data on users, Mr.
Mr. Mr. Germany: Facebook must destroy facial recognition database. German data protection officials today accused Facebook of “illegally compiling a vast photo database of users without their consent” and demanded that the social network destroy its archive of files based on facial recognition technology, the New York Times reported.
Facebook says that it uses face recognition software to match users’ photos to others and suggest friends to tag in those photos. A user can prevent friends from seeing tag suggestions when they upload photos that look like that user. But this requires opting out through Facebook privacy settings, which Germany notes is a violation of European law. “The social networking company’s decision to use analytic software to compile photographic archives of human faces, based on photos uploaded by Facebook’s users, has been controversial in Europe, where data protection laws require users to give their explicit consent to the practice,” the Times wrote.