The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in social media platforms has seen significant growth in recent years. This development involves social media companies utilising user-generated content to train their AI systems, often without explicit user consent.
Awareness about how personal data is being used is crucial. This article explores how major social media platforms leverage your content for AI purposes and outlines steps to opt-out where possible.
LinkedIn has recently introduced an option for users to opt out of having their data used to train generative AI models. According to LinkedIn, user content might be utilised by the company and its affiliates, including Microsoft partner OpenAI.
Users who wish to opt out are advised to navigate to ‘Settings & Privacy,’ select the ‘Data Privacy’ tab, and then click ‘Data for Generative AI Improvement’ to toggle the button off. It is important to note that opting out prevents the future use of personal data for AI training but does not reverse its past use.
X
Similarly, X requires users to opt out if they prefer not to have their posts utilised to train its AI chatbot, Grok. Grok has faced criticism for spreading false information and generating graphic images, prompting privacy concerns.
To opt out, users should go to ‘Settings,’ then ‘Privacy and Safety,’ and under the ‘Data Sharing and Personalization’ header, select ‘Grok’ and uncheck the box. Private accounts automatically exclude posts from being used for Grok’s AI training.
X did not proactively inform users about this data use; the policy was updated unannounced.
Snapchat
Snapchat’s ‘My Selfie’ feature transforms selfies into AI-generated images. It can also use these images to create AI-generated advertisements featuring users’ faces when they use this feature.
Snapchat’s terms of service specify that selfies shared via this feature will be employed for developing and improving machine learning models and research. By using ‘My Selfie,’ users consent to their images being used broadly, potentially in ads without compensation.
However, ‘My Selfie’ requires users to opt-in, so it is not enabled by default. Users can disable the feature by going to ‘Settings,’ then ‘My Account,’ and ‘My Selfie,’ and toggle off ‘See My Selfie in Ads.’
Reddit grants a global license to use, copy, and distribute user content shared publicly, which includes permitting third parties to access user posts for AI training.
While Reddit has made deals with firms like Google and OpenAI for data sharing, users cannot opt out of public posts being used in this way. However, private messages and posts in private communities are not shared.
Reddit’s focus on becoming profitable partly drives this collaboration with companies developing AI models.
Meta
Meta has admitted to using public posts from Facebook and Instagram to train its AI chatbot.
The company’s privacy policy indicates that public content, including posts, comments, audio, and profile pictures, may be used to train AI systems. Users can avoid this by making their accounts private.
Meta also states that private messages are exempt from AI training, making the platform’s privacy distinctions clear.
The integration of AI across social media platforms utilises vast amounts of public user-generated content. Platforms like LinkedIn, X, Snapchat, Reddit, and Meta all provide varying levels of control over how data is used.
Users must remain vigilant and proactive about their privacy settings to manage and understand the use of their data in AI training. This awareness empowers individuals to make informed decisions about their online activities and data privacy.
