Soon, Facebook could use facial recognition to verify your identity
Amid growing security concerns, Facebook appears to be working on a way to verify your identity. A new report from app reverse engineer Jane Manchun Wong has revealed that Facebook is developing a facial recognition system to check that the accounts people are using are authentic - and not fake. Here's all you need to know about it.
Problem of fake profiles on Facebook
From its early days, Facebook has been battling the problem of fake profiles - accounts that claim to represent one person but are actually run by another. The issue is now being tackled by way of algorithmic filtering and manual user reports, but even today, you can run into plenty of accounts impersonating popular celebrities, or perhaps even a person you know.
Facial recognition to verify user identities
To tackle this issue, the company is building facial recognition into its mobile app, a system that, Wong says, would scan your face and verify that the account you're using is your own. The engineer, who has previously been accurate at detecting upcoming features in apps, found references of the facial recognition system during a recent analysis of the Facebook app's code.
Video selfie would be recorded, much like Face ID
While detailing the feature, Wong claimed that the capability, if released, would take a video selfie, where the user would have to look in different directions to give a complete view of their face. The process would be similar to Face ID, but it won't be secure because the data would leave your device and go to Facebook's servers.
Facebook says it will delete the data after 30 days
As per Wong, Facebook vows to store the facial clips only for a period of 30 days and says that no one will ever be able to view it (Ahem, ahem). To note, the company did confirm this test to Engadget but emphasized that it's developing this system as a way to detect motion and confirm that you're a human and not a bot.
No word on launch as of now
As of now, there's no clarity on when or if Facebook will go ahead and release this feature. There is no doubt that the launch of this capability will tackle the problem of fake IDs and account takeovers. But it's also a possibility that many people may not like the idea of giving their facial data to Facebook, given the company's recent privacy-related scandals.
