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Facebook Re-enables Tag Suggestions Face-Recognition Feature In the US

Posted by Soulskill on from the trying-to-be-helpful-in-a-really-creepy-way dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Facebook has brought back its photo Tag Suggestions feature to the U.S. after temporarily suspending it last year to make some technical improvements. Facebook says it has re-enabled it so that its users can use facial recognition 'to help them easily identify a friend in a photo and share that content with them.' Facebook first rolled out the face recognition feature across the U.S. in late 2010. The company eventually pushed photo Tag Suggestions to other countries in June 2011, but in the US there was quite a backlash. Yet Facebook doesn't appear to have made any privacy changes to the feature: it's still on by default."

5 of 98 comments (clear)

  1. I guess all those natives were right by eksith · · Score: 4, Interesting

    A camera really can steal your soul.

    Facebook is a good idea taken way too far and a userbase that refuses to acknowledge that fact. If we've learned anything from history, people are more than willing to go along with anything that even includes physical assault for the sake of recognition. A little violation of privacy is no sweat.

    --
    If computers were people, I'd be a misanthrope.
    1. Re:I guess all those natives were right by CanHasDIY · · Score: 3, Interesting

      From Summary:

      Yet Facebook doesn't appear to have made any privacy changes to the feature: it's still on by default.

      ..."opt-in"...

      You keep using that phrase, but I do not think it means what you think it means...

      --
      An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
  2. Is it 1984, or am I a conspiracy theorist? by TheDarkener · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Perception causes me to believe that this "feature" is a double-edged sword. On the one side, it adds to the whole "social networking" thing. Find friends, recognize friends, connect with friends.

    On the other hand, it is a massive crowdsourced facial recognition system that is incredibly difficult to stay away from, even if you refuse to be a part of Facebook (IIRC people can tag you in a picture by typing in your name). It's a f*cking privacy nightmare.

    But what do you have to hide, huh? *grin....sigh*

    --
    It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
    1. Re:Is it 1984, or am I a conspiracy theorist? by ganjadude · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Anytime my name is tagged, i get a email that asked me if i want the info published to my friends or not. BEFORE my name is added. This goes for posts and photo tags. I find this to be a fair trade off.

      --
      have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
    2. Re:Is it 1984, or am I a conspiracy theorist? by icebike · · Score: 3, Interesting

      While you can tag people who don't have accounts, they won't be auto-tagged (obviously) and there's no way to search for them unless it's your own album -- so the stuff you're talking about has been unchanged since photo tagging first came out years ago.

      Such nonsense. That YOU can't search for some unknown face, doesn't mean some privileged few (perhaps with warrant in hand) can't search.

      --
      Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.