Facebook changed its Privacy Declaration without consent
Facebook is being criticised for launching a "facial recognition" photo tagging service without properly informing its users.
The new tool scans users' new photos, comparing the faces in the photos with previously tagged photos to see if it can match any of the people. If a match is found, Facebook tells the person uploading the photos and invites them to "tag", or identify, the person in the photo.
The feature is designed to speed up the process of labelling friends in photos, but the sudden implementation of the feature, without warning, has sparked concerns among both privacy campaigners and officials. Facebook have also been criticised for changing its Privacy Declaration without user consent.
Many Facebook users are also unhappy about the feature. Some users are concerned about privacy implications, while others have found that their pictures have been tagged with incorrect names.
Facebook has admitted that it "should have been more clear" about the roll out of the technology. The social network company has agreed to provide European regulators with information about its use of the technology.
Their concerns are now being examined by the Information Commissioner's Office.