Social media companies are using your information to train AI models.
LinkedIn users began complaining about one such example in posts across the site last week after discovering that their posts, images and profiles are being used without permission.
Alongside other social media sites like Snapchat and Facebook, users are required to opt out of this option, possibly without having ever granted the app permission to use their information in the first place.
Users can protect their information from being shared on most accounts in the future by toggling the ‘opt out’ or ‘off’ function in the privacy section of their settings account.
Social media companies are utilizing user’s profiles, posts and pictures to train their AI models
It has become common practice for companies to use information found online to train their AI tools.
While users regularly use these sites to share news of their latest achievements, events or friendly hangouts, this information has become fair game for companies who want to use it to their own benefit.
Users have expressed their shock that social media sites aren’t just using their information, they’re automatically opting them in without their consent.
When users noticed LinkedIn had quietly changed its settings last week, it brought other social media companies into the limelight including Snapchat, X and Meta.
LinkedIn, which is owned by Microsoft, caught many users unaware last week when it added the option to access user profiles to train AI models.
Currently, users can use these models to help them find jobs or flesh out their resumes, but the company is now implementing this in reverse.
The company claimed it notified users about its new AI data policy via emails, text messages and banners on its site, but users say they either didn’t have time to opt out of the feature or didn’t know it had been put in place.
The company and its affiliates are reportedly using the data, posts and other content on user’s profiles to train AI models – although LinkedIn does not state who its affiliates are.
To opt out of this feature, users will need to go to their account settings page and search under privacy to find the ‘Data for Generative AI Improvement’ option.
Then you’ll need to switch it off to stop LinkedIn from using your information in the future.
While toggling the option to ‘off’ does prohibit access moving forward, it doesn’t remove the information LinkedIn had already accessed up to that point.
‘We believe that our members should have the ability to exercise control over their data, which is why we are making available an opt out setting for training AI models used for content generation in the countries where we do this,’ a LinkedIn spokesperson told DailyMail.com.
‘We’ve always used some form of automation in LinkedIn products, and we’ve always been clear that users have the choice about how their data is used.
‘The reality of where we’re at today is a lot of people are looking for help to get that first draft of that resume, to help write the summary on their LinkedIn profile, to help craft messages to recruiters to get that next career opportunity.
‘At the end of the day, people want that edge in their careers and what our gen-AI services do is help give them that assist.’
Snapchat’s ‘My Selfie’ future could release your likeness to third parties through the ‘My Selfie’ feature
Snapchat
Snapchat’s ‘My Selfie’ feature could pose an issue for users in the future by releasing AI-generated ad content using people’s pictures without requiring their permission.
Currently, the feature lets users turn the selfies into AI images which can be used to create AI-generated advertisements that feature the user’s face.
A Snapchat spokesperson clarified that these ads are only shared with the individual and refuted the claims of one Reddit user who claimed the company had used their likeness to publicly generate an ad.
‘I have no idea how they got photos of me to be able to generate this ad,’ the person wrote on Reddit.
‘Was this something that I agreed to when signing Snapchat’s TOS? They can just give my photos to advertisers to work into their advertisements?’
The spokesperson told DailyMail.com that the ‘My Selfie’ feature is only part of the in-app experience to allow users to manage their own AI likeness, but claimed the company ‘[does] not share ‘My Selfie’ with advertisers in any capacity.’
However, according to Snapchat’s ‘Terms of Service,’ users agree to give business partners unrestricted access to their My Selfie images and the right to use, promote, broadcast, or create derivative works using their likeness generated through the feature.
The spokesperson claimed Snapchat doesn’t currently give third parties access to the AI-generated images, but the terms and conditions means that the company is ‘reserving the right in the future to use for ads in the future.’
‘I can’t speak to if people would be notified’ before Snapchat released information the spokesperson said, but added that she thinks there would be a pop-up notice.’
Users do have to opt-in to create an AI image using the My Selfie feature, so their regularly shared pictures won’t be shared with third parties.
Those who have turned on the feature can go to Settings, click on their account and the ‘My Selfie’ option and toggle off ‘See my selfie in ads’ to remove the possibility of having their image used to create sponsored AI-generated content.
Meta
Meta admits to using public posts from Facebook and Instagram users to train its AI model, Llama.
The company uses posts, comments, audio and profile pictures which can include personal details like the author’s name and contact information, according to its Privacy Center.
Private messages shared between friends and family members are reportedly not used to train Llama.
However, even if you don’t use any of Meta’s apps, the company confirmed that it could still use your information found in a photo of you posted by a friend to help train the AI bot.
Meta has made it difficult to opt out of it accessing your information and does not provide a simple toggle option in the privacy section.
Instead, users need to go to the Settings page on their Instagram or Facebook app and go into the Privacy Policy section.
From there, you’ll need to click into the Meta AI page and scroll down to the Take Control section where you’ll have the option to manage the information the company collects from your profile.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Meta for comment.
X
Similarly to LinkedIn, X automatically signs users up to allow the company to use their information to train AI models, requiring them to opt-out if they want to stop the company from using their posts.
According to X’s Help Center, the platform uses people’s post to train its AI chatbot, Grok, improve its ‘ability to provide accurate, relevant, and engaging responses’ and develop its ‘sense of humor and wit.’
The company didn’t notify users about the change, but said it was posting how its Grok chatbot uses data in response to user queries.
‘Grok’s access to real-time public X posts allows Grok to respond to user queries with up-to-date information and insights on a wide range of topics,’ X says on its site.
To opt out of model training, users to go to their account settings, click into the privacy and safety section and select ‘data sharing and personalization.’
From there, they should click on ‘Grok’ and next to the data sharing section, where it says ‘allow your posts as well as your interactions, inputs, and results with Grok to be used for training and fine-tuning, toggle the option to ‘off.’
DailyMail.com has reached out to X for comment.
