We know, it sounds very dodgy…
Facebook is asking users to send the social media company their nude photos in an effort to tackle revenge porn so that the victim has some sort of control should an incident ever occur.
The social media giant is saying that by collecting everyone’s private photos, they can convert the images into a unique digital fingerprint that can be used to identify and block any attempts to re-upload the same image.
Facebook users have been worried in the past that their most intimate photos might be shared around by a partner/ex-partner without their consent using the website or messaging service.
They are piloting the new technology in Australia – in partnership with an e-safety government agency – and head commissioner of that agency, Julia Inman Grant told ABC News that the mechanism would allow victims of “image-based abuse” to take action before pictures were posted on Facebook, Instagram or Messenger.
“We see many scenarios where maybe photos or videos were taken consensually at one point, but there was not any sort of consent to send the images or videos more broadly,” she told the Australian broadcaster.
Users are asked to complete an online form on the e-safety commissioner’s website outlining their concerns and then they will be asked to send the pictures that they are concerned about to themselves on Messenger. Their submission will be notified to Facebook which will then begin the process of creating a unique digital fingerprint.
The company said that they will store these images for a short period of time before deleting them to ensure it is enforcing the policy correctly.
If deemed a success in Australia, the safety initiative could be used in Europe as a spokesperson for Facebook told ABC News that “the company was exploring additional partners and countries.”
