Meta, a social network company with nearly 4 billion users, is testing how it can use facial recognition technology to combat fake celebrity scam ads plaguing its platforms.
Meta said early testing with a small group of celebrities has shown “promising results” and that it will trial the facial recognition technology with 50,000 celebrities and public figures “in the coming weeks.”
Meta said the system compares images in the ad against the celebrity’s Facebook and Instagram profile pictures to spot scams. “If we confirm a match and determine the ad is a scam, we’ll block it,” the company said in an Oct. 21 statement.
Celebrities including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, American TV host Oprah Winfrey and Australian mining billionaires Andrew Forrest and Gina Rinehart have been impersonated in scam ads in the past. Many victims are lured into crypto investment scams via AI-generated deepfakes.
Meta said the move is part of a broader crackdown against “celeb-bait” scams from cyber criminals who have become increasingly sophisticated in stealing personal information or money from victims, Meta said:
“This scheme, commonly called “celeb-bait,” violates our policies and is bad for people that use our products.”
Three of Meta’s tips to spot scams and stay safe online. Source: Meta
Mark Zuckerberg’s company said it would soon start sending in-app notifications to many targeted celebrities, informing them that they have been enrolled in the protection measure and can choose to opt-out.
Still, Meta may need to proceed with caution following its recent $1.4 billion settlement with Texas for using the personal biometric data from millions of its residents without legal authorization.
Meta said it would immediately delete facial data generated when determining whether a celebrity ad is a scam.
It will also use facial recognition technology to allow people to verify their identity and regain access to compromised accounts.
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Despite an increase in crypto scam ads on Facebook, Meta refuted claims from Australia’s consumer regulator that almost 60% of crypto investment schemes on Facebook in August were scams.
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