Meta to use Instagram and Facebook posts for AI training in the UK - but how does it affect me?

Meta said on Friday that it will push ahead with controversial plans to use millions of UK Facebook and Instagram posts to train its artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Starting from next week, Mark Zuckerberg's company said it will use public posts, including photos, captions and comments, to build its generative AI to "reflect British culture, history and idiom."

The content will not include private messages or information from accounts of users under the age of 18, it added.

“This means that our generative AI models will reflect British culture, history and idiom, and that UK companies and institutions will be able to utilise the latest technology," Meta said in a statement.

"We’re building AI at Meta to reflect the diverse communities around the world and we look forward to launching it in more countries and languages later this year.”

Here's how the new changes came about - and how they could affect you.

How did we get here?

The announcement comes three months after the company paused its plans in the UK due to resistance from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which warned that Meta had to respect the privacy of its users.

The office had raised multiple concerns over how Meta gained people’s consent to use their data.

But on Friday, the ICO U-turned on its stance, adding that while it won't be providing regulatory approval for Meta's plan, it will instead monitor the experiment.

Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning.

A spokesperson for ICO told ITV News in a statement: “We have been clear that any organisation using its users’ information to train generative AI models should be transparent about how people’s data is being used.

“Organisations should put effective safeguards in place before they start using personal data for model training, including providing a clear and simple route for users to object to the processing.

“The ICO has not provided regulatory approval for the processing and it is for Meta to ensure and demonstrate ongoing compliance."

Meanwhile, the European Union privacy regulations have made it more difficult for Meta to begin its AI training in the bloc.

Similar changes were due to come into effect on June 26 in the EU, but Meta’s announcement sparked dozens of complaints by privacy campaigners.

They argue that Meta was contravening various aspects of the bloc’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) — the legal framework which underpins EU Member States’ national privacy laws.

In turn, Meta has accused the EU of holding back the development of AI.

The plans remain on hold in Europe at the time of writing.

How can UK users opt out of the plan?

Meta says that "from next week" all adults in the UK who use Facebook and Instagram "will start receiving in-app notifications to explain what we’re doing".

It is unclear what these notifications will look like but, according to Meta, they will include information on how you can "access an objection form" so you can opt out of your data "being used to train our generative AI models".

If you don't want to wait for these notifications, you can choose to make your content private, if it's not already.

Meta says it will "use public information" for its AI plans, which means that if your Facebook or Instagram posts aren't public, you should have nothing to worry about.

To check this in the Facebook app, go to Menu > Settings & privacy > Settings, and scroll down to the Audience and Visibility section.

In here, you'll see sections for Posts, Stories, and Reels – tap each one and make sure the audience is set to one of the four options that aren't 'Public'.

On Instagram, you can go on your settings, scroll down to 'who can see your content' and tap on 'Account privacy'.

By default, this will be set to 'Public', but to make it private toggle 'Private account'.

Meanwhile, if you want to see what kind of data is available to Meta, you can also submit requests related to your personal information here.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know