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Meta turn to facial recognition tech to combat scams


Meta will send notifications within its apps to public figures and celebrities, letting them know they are part of a new experiment and that they can choose to opt-out.

Agranovich, the Director of Global Threat Disruption at Meta, explained that if Meta suspects an ad or account might be a scam using a celebrity's image, they will use facial recognition technology (FRT) to compare the celebrity’s face from their Facebook or Instagram profile picture to the one in the ad. If there’s a match and the ad is confirmed to be a scam, Meta will block it. He mentioned that this process is quicker and more accurate than human reviews.

The second use of FRT is for account recovery. Meta will use FRT along with video selfies to help users verify their identity more easily when trying to regain access to hacked accounts. Sometimes, users lose access to their Facebook or Instagram accounts if they forget their password, lose their device, or get tricked by a scammer.

If an account is compromised, users need to confirm their identity by uploading an official ID or document with their name. Now, Meta is testing video selfies to help users verify their identity. Users will upload a video selfie, which will be compared to the profile pictures on their account, similar to how phones unlock.

Agranovich emphasized that the video will not be visible to anyone on Facebook or Instagram, and Meta will delete any facial data right after the comparison, whether there's a match or not.

This pilot will help us more effectively remove scam ads featuring celebrities and make it easier for people to recover hacked accounts,” Agranovich said. He also noted that this is just one part of Meta's overall strategy to combat scams and cybersecurity threats across its platforms.

 Scam Check Overview

1.Initial rollout for celebrities affected by scams

2.Public rollout in the coming weeks

3.In-app notifications sent to enrolled public figures

4.Opt-out option available

5.FRT will compare celebrity faces from their profile pictures in suspected scam ads/accounts

6.Ads/accounts will be blocked if a match is confirmed

7.FRT will also assist in account recovery.







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