Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has admitted to using public photos and user posts to train its AI models.

 

The statement was made by Melinda Claybo, the company’s global privacy director, during an inquiry by the Australian Senate. Claybo confirmed that Meta has been collecting user data since 2007, unless the posts were private.

 

This recognition raised serious concerns about data privacy, especially in the context of underage users. Claybo stressed that accounts of people under the age of 18 are not scanned, but public photos of children posted by their parents can be used to train AI.

 

In the European Union, users can opt out of having their data used for AI training, while Australian users cannot. This discrepancy has raised questions about how well Meta is prepared to protect the privacy of its users around the world.