Explained: Fb's shutting down of face recognition system

In the beginning of November this year, the recently rebranded tech and internet giant Meta Platforms Inc declared that it is soon going to shut down its decade old face recognition system on its most popular social media platform, Facebook.  

Face recognition system: What is it all about?  
Since 2010, the face recognition system on Facebook has identified its users in pictures and videos uploaded by them or others and have recommended to tag themselves or their friends. This directly connecting the person’s image to their profiles. In fact, this feature was beneficial to a lot of users as it instantly notified them if their images or videos were uploaded on the social media platform, with or without their consent, creating awareness and strengthening data privacy and security.  

What will be the outcomes of this shut down?  
According to Meta officials, one-third of Facebook users profit from the soon-to-be discontinued face recognition system. When it’s shut down, billions of active users will lose their already saved face recognition templates. Moreover, people who find the face recognition system useful will have to get over this habit as their faces will no longer be detected in photos and videos, neither will they be notified when others upload their pictures. This will result in severe privacy malfunction on Facebook’s part.  

Why is Facebook deleting the face recognition system?  
While many people found the face recognition system useful, there were others who identified it as a privacy concern, leading to Facebook falling prey to lawsuits and federal investigations. According to the parent company, after an extensive and careful consideration, weighing the pros and cons, they have come to the decision of shutting down Facebook’s face recognition system. However, they have assured that this deletion is temporary and the feature will be back soon with upgradation.  

Is Facebook completely eliminating the technology?  
While Facebook has announced that the face recognition system will be removed by the end of this year, it plans to retain its DeepFace feature, an advanced algorithm that powers recognition system. In fact, Meta authorities have stated that its future products might even come with an advanced face recognition system.