Facebook Disables Face Recognition In EU
SquarePixel writes "Facebook has disabled face recognition features on its site for all new European users. The move follows privacy recommendations made by the Irish Data Protection Commissioner. Tag Suggest information has been turned off for new users, and Facebook plans to delete the information for existing EU users by October 15th. 'The DPC says today’s report (PDF) is the result of evaluations it made through the first half of 2012 and on-site at Facebook’s HQ in Dublin over the course of two days in May and four in July. The DPC says FB has made just about all of the improvements it requested in five key areas: better transparency for the user in how their data is handled; user control over settings; more clarity on the retention periods for the deletion of personal data, and users getting more control over deleting things; an improvement in how users can access their personal data; and the ability of Facebook to be able to better track how they are complying with data protection requirements.'"
Other countries should get a clue before they lose what privacy they have left. It's not an obsolete concept just because the execs of the companies that stand to profit most from your personal info say so. Facial recognition technology is one of the biggest threats to privacy.
"When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
Ok, Europe's solved a relatively minor problem hostorically -- evil corporations tracking you.
Now you need to tackle the other 99.99% of the historical problem, billions-of-needless-deathswise, and stop government from facial recognition, and license plate recognition, and so on and automated assembly into tracking databases.
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
I just logged in to Facebook and changed my home to Dublin, Ireland.
Stop-Prism.org: Opt Out of Surveillance
The article isn't very clear about this either.
My thoughts exactly. I really don't care about a big evil corporation knowing where I've been, my religion, what I weigh, who I have sex with, etc. If anything, the more they know about me, the more likely that they will make products I want to buy.
However, the government knowing all of those things is actually something to be concerned about.
I think it is quite a marketing feat by the EU: Make it appear that they are strong defenders of privacy by being ruthless in protecting the privacy of consumers, while implementing far worse privacy breaches on their own citizens.
Grammer Nazis - I mod you "troll" unless you actually add something on-topic. Yes, I know I have mispellings in my sig.
Excuse my ignorance, but I don't have have myself an Facebook account. What is exactly good for? I don't chat, I usually prefer to talk to friends over a beer. I share pictures over Picasa. So what value would an Facebook account add for someone? Thank you.
Now just wait for Google Image to recognize what's on pictures...
Assange called Facebook "The most abominable spying-machine created in all of human history". I'm inclined to think that he was right about that, since U.S. 3 letter agencies seem to have bought special software that crawls sites like Facebook to collect as much data/information about each person as possible. -------- The EU did the right thing here. Suckerberg can't be trusted with anybody's privacy. -------- Now if only I could live to see the day when people voluntarily delete their profiles off Facebook, and use alternate services that aren't as intrusive...
Why did the chicken cross the road? Because Elon Musk put an AI chip in its head.
We have the right to record things in public. That means we can freely follow and track other people. Pretty soon everyone with be walking around with a camera on their person. The camera will tie into a computer and will be able to take clues from the environment as well as to record everything that happens within a two day period. Where did I leave my keys? Just rewind...
So are we going to take away the right to record in public? What happens when devices will be able to record directly from our brain activity? Is everyone going to have the equivalent of copyright to their own images? Is everyone going to be forced to forget everyone else and submit to memory wipe everyday as a result of a DMCA like forget notification?
When it comes to location and tracking on that point we have to surrender. There is no way to put that genie back in the bottle. And to me when anyone in the pubic can do it I see no reason the government couldn't do it as well. That cat is simply out of the bag.
As I've always been suspicious of Facebook-style sites I would never do such.
What made me really worried is the in the mail named persons I could get in touch with would I set up an account, a whole string of my private and business acquaintances all over the world were listed, how the HELL did they amass this on a non-member???
Because I'm pretty sure my sister has not listed this string of acquaintances that are not even likely to know each other...
I am sick of this CIA/KGB style site!
"The likes of Facebook and WhatsApp are free to those whose privacy is of zero value."
It is most definitely at the forefront of privacy invasion, with the possible exception of California whose Attorney-General takes Californian privacy laws - the tightest in the US - seriously.
on of the things Facebook likes to do is Yoink your address book/contacts list from your email service so i would bet that somebody on that list allowed the address book yoink and then got X folks to sign up and some of them allowed the Yoink (Facebook at this stage cross references and dedupes the addresses). Now that it has gotten to YOU Facebook has noticed that %list% has YOU listed.
Any person using FTFY or editing my postings agrees to a US$50.00 charge
I really don't care about a big evil corporation knowing where I've been, my religion, what I weigh, who I have sex with, etc. If anything, the more they know about me, the more likely that they will make products I want to buy.
However, the government knowing all of those things is actually something to be concerned about.
Funny, my view is the exact opposite. I'm shocked if I lose a private document and the government archives don't have a backup. On the other hand, I'm endlessly annoyed by all kinds of merchants trying to get under my skin all the time.
My government is not out to get me. The corporations are.
No, it also applies in the countries that are part of the European Economic Area (EEA). That's the EU and most of EFTA. We're a few small countries, but we're not members of the EU. The FTA means the same laws apply within the EEA (27+3).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Economic_Area
My thoughts exactly. I really don't care about a big evil corporation knowing where I've been, my religion, what I weigh, who I have sex with, etc. If anything, the more they know about me, the more likely that they will make products I want to buy.
However, the government knowing all of those things is actually something to be concerned about.
The biggest problems seem to be 1) disclosure of information and 2) malicious action based on the information. In a democratic society, both companies and government have to follow the law, and there are serious repercussions if they don't.
The potential for (1) is about the same for both, but the actions in (2) are worse for the government: they can put you in jail, while the worst thing companies can do is to collude to raise prices just for you or deny you some service. We're not discussing the actions, however, but the information itself. Companies can disclose incriminating information to government at will, using the police as its tool to do evil.
It should be noted that there is a real difference: government can collect information by force (or by law), but you can often avoid tracking from companies. It can even deny others to do the same tracking (like in this story, though I'd say that data anlaysis and correlation is never the real problem). That is a separate discussion, though
That's both true and just part of the whole truth.
While it may be legally required in the EU, it may also be required in the EEA (EU+3). Even then it is often applied in all of the European countries (EU/EEA/non-EU), it's easier for companies that way (see Facebook).
Until they get caught not doing what they were told to the last time this time.
Jack of all trades,master of none
Comment removed based on user account deletion
by being ruthless in protecting the privacy of consumers, while implementing far worse privacy breaches on their own citizens.
Care to point some out?
Seems you are better informed than me, which privacy breaches are the european governments planning?
Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
Doing, not planning:
http://www.justfuckinggoogleit.com/search.pl?query=european+citizen+surveillance
Grammer Nazis - I mod you "troll" unless you actually add something on-topic. Yes, I know I have mispellings in my sig.
Before refering other people to google you should google yourself.
The search terms you proposed don't bring up anything relevant, YFYI.
Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.