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Meta Platforms’ Instagram has been in the news recently, though not for any good reason.
An investigation by the BBC found that Instagram has been running paid advertisements promoting child sexual abuse imagery (CSAM) in India. More recently, the launch of Meta’s Muse Image AI tool has sparked concerns of publicly accessible Instagram images being used to fuel non-consensual deepfakes and other AI-enabled badness.
Here’s a rundown of what you need to know about both issues.
CSAM ads on Instagram in India
The BBC investigation found that the paid advertisements on Indian Instagram accounts used terms like “rape video” or “child video.” The ads connected users to channels on the Telegram messaging app, with the materials being sold for a minimum of 99 rupees — a little over $1, or about P64.
These Instagram ads are only published after an approval using Meta’s moderation technology.
In India, distributing CSAM and adult pornography are considered criminal offenses. Meta also has policies against distributing CSAM and adult nudity on its platforms.
While the BBC did report the ads it found, Meta said 24 hours after the reporting that the ads did not violate the company’s community guidelines.
When later asked for comment, Meta said it had done the work to disable several ads and suspended the accounts making the posts and ads. The company added it had taken down other ads and accounts, in addition to blocking links to other policy-violating content based on the BBC’s findings.
On a July 7 Meta Newsroom statement, it said it was aware of the reports about the Indian Instagram ads, adding that it was taking a zero-tolerance approach to the issue while improving its defenses against such offenses occurring on its platforms.
The Muse Image AI debacle
Aside from CSAM ads in India, Meta is also dealing with another issue in the form of its recently launched Muse Image, its first image generation AI model.
The main bone of contention with Muse Image was that users who have access to it have the ability to generate images using public-facing photos from Instagram. While there might be wholesome ways to use that, the problem arises when bad actors decide to generate deepfakes.
Worse still, Meta required people who don’t want to have their Instagram photos used for AI to opt out rather than give them the choice to opt into the service.
Privacy and consumer advocates denounced the issues with Meta’s new tool.
J.B. Branch, director of federal AI governance and technology policy at the consumer nonprofit organization Public Citizen, said in a statement that this was the “creepiest possible path” for Instagram and Meta to take with the new tool.
Branch added, “Unfortunately, we’ve reached a point where many technology companies treat every piece of our personal information—our photos, our voices, our biometric identifiers, even our relationships—as raw material to fuel their AI ambitions.”
He remarked that allowing companies to take and appropriate people’s likenesses without meaningful, affirmative consent crosses a line. “If our faces can be repurposed for AI simply because we posted a public photo, then very little remains off limits,” he explained.
Donald Campbell, advocacy director at tech justice nonprofit Foxglove, called Muse Image’s opt-out requirement “an obvious recipe for disaster.”
“We’ve already seen a catalogue of harms from non-consensual AI-altered images on social platforms just in the past year,” Campbell explained.
Privacy International also criticized Meta for Muse Image, saying it is “the latest sign AI companies see people’s images and data as raw material to be exploited.”
Meanwhile, a Deadline report citing the Creative Artists Agency (CAA) said, “No one’s name, image, likeness, voice, or creative work should be used by any third party, including AI models, without clear, documented consent.”
“We have raised our concerns with Meta on behalf of our clients, voicing our disapproval and perspective on the need for a more responsible approach,” CAA added. “We call on Meta to make protection the default on Muse Image, not the exception, and enable individuals to opt-in if they want to allow usage of their image or likeness for AI content creation.”
I speak of this in past tense now, as Meta has, as of July 10, scrapped Muse Image due to the feedback from various groups, including SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors and other media professionals.
In a statement, Meta said, “Our intent was to provide a useful creative tool and to give people control over whether their public content could be referenced in this way.”
“We’ve heard the feedback that this feature missed the mark, so it’s no longer available,” it said.
A callous treatment of humans as data points
Both the India Instagram CSAM issue and the problems related to Muse Image feature bad judgement on Meta’s side.
For one thing, the distribution and proliferation of CSAM, especially if reported, should have been taken into consideration more seriously rather than left to some automated system. If a person overseeing the review of content didn’t flag those egregious ads, that would be even worse.
Meta is also on the hook for creating an opt-out function rather than allowing users to opt into joining the Muse Image bandwagon.
If it treats humans simply as data points that are inconsequential unless they bring value to the company, then we would be better served avoiding Meta Platforms or taking them to task more often for their missteps. – Rappler.com
