Meta Reintroduces Facial Recognition to Fight Scams and Improve Account Recovery
Meta is reintroducing facial recognition technology to enhance security on its platforms, Facebook and Instagram. The primary aim is to combat fraudulent advertisements known as “celeb-bait ads,” which misuse celebrity images to mislead users into visiting scam websites. Currently, Meta’s advertising system conducts routine checks before ads are published, but distinguishing between legitimate and fraudulent ads that feature celebrity images has proven challenging. Monika Bickert, Meta’s Vice President for Content Policy, highlighted that the company plans to utilize facial recognition to match faces in these ads with the profile pictures of public figures. If a match is confirmed and the ad is deemed a scam, it will be blocked.
In addition to combating scams, Meta is also leveraging facial recognition technology to assist users in recovering lost accounts. This situation often arises when a hacker gains access to an account and alters the password and recovery options, or when users lose access to their recovery codes. Users may be required to upload an official identification document to regain access. Furthermore, Meta is testing a new method that allows users to upload a “video selfie” for account recovery. The company will compare this video with the user’s profile pictures to verify identity and restore access if everything checks out.
Despite the previous discontinuation of its facial recognition system in 2021 due to privacy concerns, Meta sees potential in using this technology for security purposes. The company faced significant legal challenges in Illinois and Texas due to biometric data collection without consent, which led to substantial settlements. However, Bickert emphasized that the company is committed to using facial recognition solely for security-related applications. Meta will not test these systems in the EU, the UK, Illinois, or Texas, and it has pledged to delete any facial data generated during the comparison process.
Meta is set to conduct broader testing of the facial recognition system in December to effectively prevent celeb-bait ads, while allowing celebrities the option to opt out of the program. The video selfie recovery feature is expected to be available to more users in the coming months, and the company is monitoring potential exploitation of the system through deepfake technologies. Meta’s spokesperson noted that data from these tests will be closely observed to ensure the system’s effectiveness against synthetic videos.
Source: Meta Revives Facial Recognition to Fight Scams and Account Hijacking
