Cybersecurity Policy Report, Norwegian DPA Advises Interested Parties on Meta’s AI Training Process, (Jun 5, 2024)

By Tony Foley

Datatilsynet, the Norwegian data protection agency, has offered information for consumers on Meta Platforms, Inc.’s plan to use posts and photos on Facebook and Instagram to develop and improve its artificial intelligence service.

In a news release issued yesterday, Datatilsynet said Meta planned to begin using such data in its AI training on June 26, although it will not use private messages to friends and families for training purposes. The company claims it doesn’t need to ask users for consent to process their public data in this fashion, arguing that its interest in using the content outweighs the users’ interests and rights. Datatilsynet said it had received many questions about the legality of Meta’s plan and expressed doubt about whether Meta should be allowed to use the data in this manner. But Datatilsynet acknowledged that there was no precedent on the issue, meaning that “[i]t is therefore difficult to put two lines under the answer.”

The news release describes Meta’s plans, which entail training a chatbot. In addition to scraping open data from the Internet, Meta plans to use users’ posts and images, which many users consider to be private. Datatilsynet suggests that people who do not want their posts and images to be used for Meta’s AI training should submit protest forms for Facebook and Instagram, links to which are provided in the news release.

Datatilsynet noted that it had already received a complaint about Meta’s proposed processing and that it expected similar complaints to be filed throughout Europe soon. The agency will work with other supervisory authorities to determine the legality of Meta’s activities, and if they conclude that Meta’s practices are illegal, will issue decisions on prohibition and deletion.

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