Meta Enhances Facial Recognition to Fight Impersonation in Europe and South Korea
I know how annoying it is to see fake accounts popping up, especially those impersonating public figures. Well, Meta is tackling this issue head-on by expanding its facial recognition technology to Europe, the UK, and South Korea. It's already live on Facebook, and Instagram will be next in the coming months.
This isn't entirely new; they rolled it out in the US last year. The goal is to spot fraudulent ads using a celebrity's image and also to help people recover hacked accounts. It appears that public figures can opt-in to this program, which is great. Imagine how frustrating it must be to have someone create a fake profile using your face!
So, how does it work? Meta will use facial recognition to compare the profile picture of the suspicious account with the real public figure's photos on Facebook and Instagram. If it's a match, the impostor account gets removed. It's a pretty straightforward approach, and I think it's a welcome addition, especially with the rise of scams.
This technology has been quietly helping with account recovery in the UK, EU, and South Korea since March, which is a nice bonus. Now, facial recognition is still a hot-button issue. I can understand why some people are wary of it, especially after Facebook shut down its facial recognition system a few years ago due to privacy concerns. However, I think using it to combat impersonation and fraud is a worthwhile cause. The numbers speak for themselves: reports of "celebrity bait" ads dropped by 22% globally in the first half of 2025. That's a pretty significant impact.
Source: Engadget