Meta Faces EU Pressure Over Personal Data Use for AI Training
A notification to Facebook users mentioned that Meta may process information about individuals who are not users if they are depicted in images or mentioned in posts by others.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is under scrutiny in the European Union over its plans to use personal data for training its artificial intelligence (AI) models without obtaining explicit user consent. The advocacy group NOYB (None of Your Business) has called on privacy regulators across Europe to intervene and prevent these practices.
Meta's updated privacy policy, set to take effect on June 26, permits the use of a wide range of personal data, such as posts, images, and online tracking details, for the development of AI. NOYB has lodged 11 complaints with data protection authorities across Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Spain, calling for immediate action against Meta's new policy, as reported by Reuters.
Meta has responded to NOYB's allegations, citing a blog post dated May 22, which clarifies that the company utilizes publicly accessible and licensed data, along with information shared on its platforms, for AI training purposes. Additionally, a notification to Facebook users mentioned that Meta may process information about individuals who are not users if they are depicted in images or mentioned in posts by others.
"Our methods are in line with privacy regulations and align with practices of other technology firms, such as Google and OpenAI, in the development and enhancement of AI experiences within Europe," stated a representative from Meta.
Nevertheless, NOYB founder Max Schrems contends that Meta's practices contravene the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which prescribes fines of up to 4% of a company's worldwide turnover for non-compliance. Schrems highlighted that the European Court of Justice (CJEU) has previously decided against the use of 'legitimate interest' as grounds for superseding users' data protection rights in the context of advertising.
