Meta might be secretly scanning your phone's camera roll - how to check and turn it off

Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. Meta could be analyzing and retaining your phone's photos without your explicit consent. Some Facebook users have noticed that, deep within their app settings, Meta has switched on two toggles that allow it to access their camera roll to offer AI-powered suggestions, including "personalized creative ideas, like travel highlights and collages." Also: How to delete Facebook, Messenger, or Instagram - if you want Meta out of your life The problem? The toggles for the AI suggestion features, called "camera roll sharing suggestions," appear to be turned on for users who claim they haven't seen a pop-up from Facebook asking for permission to enable them. If you get that "cloud processing" pop-up and tap "Allow" on it, you'll agree to Meta's AI Terms of Service and permit your "media and facial features" to be analyzed by AI. Facebook will then use your camera roll images -- including the dates on them and the presence of people or objects -- to suggest collages, themed albums, recap posts, or AI restyled versions of your pictures. These AI suggestions are only visible to you, unless you choose to share them, and Meta says the media won't be used for ad targeting. Also: How to protect your privacy from Facebook - and what doesn't work But, to be clear, you're still giving Meta the right to access and retain your camera roll images, and that could raise serious privacy concerns, especially for users who never knowingly opted in. Z...