Meta Revives Facial Recognition to Combat Rising Celebrity Scam Ads
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is reinstating its facial recognition software to address a surge in fraudulent ads involving public figures, also known as “celeb bait” scams. These scams use images of celebrities to deceive users, often promoting fake investment schemes or products.
The technology, which was shut down three years ago due to privacy concerns, will now be trialed starting in December. The initiative aims to automatically compare Facebook profile pictures of about 50,000 public figures with images used in suspected scam ads. If a match is found and the ad is identified as fraudulent, Meta will block it.
Celebrities included in the trial will be notified and given the option to opt-out if they choose. While Meta plans to roll out the software globally, certain regions such as Britain, the European Union, South Korea, and U.S. states like Texas and Illinois are excluded due to regulatory restrictions.
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Monika Bickert, Meta’s Vice President of Content Policy, explained that the initiative seeks to protect public figures frequently targeted by scammers. “The idea here is to roll out as much protection as we can for them. They can opt out if they want to, but we want to make this protection easy and available,” she said during a press briefing.
Addressing privacy concerns, Meta emphasized that any facial data generated during the trial will be immediately deleted after comparison, regardless of the result. The company noted that it had conducted extensive internal privacy assessments and consulted with regulators and experts.
Meta is also considering expanding the use of facial recognition technology to assist regular Facebook and Instagram users in regaining access to hacked or locked accounts. This comes after Meta initially shut down its facial recognition system in 2021, citing societal concerns over privacy.
The revival of this technology follows Meta’s settlement with the state of Texas in August, where it agreed to pay $1.4 billion over allegations of illegally collecting biometric data. The company has faced multiple lawsuits for failing to adequately address “celeb bait” scams, which often use images, sometimes generated by AI, to exploit users.
As Meta seeks to balance privacy with protection, the reintroduction of facial recognition marks a shift in its approach to tackling online fraud.
