Am I on MegaFace?

MegaFace is an expansive facial recognition software database containing the images of nearly 700,000 individuals, many of whom may be completely unaware that these images have been collected and distributed. These images were taken from Flickr, a popular photo-sharing site.

What is MegaFace?

According to the New York Times, the database was created by David Ayman Shamma, then a director of research at Yahoo, in an attempt to even the playing field for facial recognition software. Prior to the release of MegaFace, only the largest companies with the most resources were able to obtain the amount of data required to train facial recognition software.

According to Shamma, a safeguard was built into the database to protect users. Although people whose images were included in the database were not notified, the database did not include the original images. Instead, links to the images were collected.

This was intended to allow users who deleted their photos or changed their privacy settings to remove their photos from the database. However, many of the researchers and entities who used the database directly downloaded the images and distributed them, rather than distributing the links.

Additionally, a flaw in Flickr security resulted in images that had been set to private still being accessible through the database. Many people whose images were included in the database without their consent have rights and may be able to pursue compensation for these invasions of privacy.

Am I On MegaFace?

Thousands of people’s images may be in the MegaFace database. Anyone who uploaded photos of themselves or their children to Flickr may have had their images scraped from the site and included in MegaFace.

Additionally, people who are friends with Flickr users may also unknowingly be in the database. As MegaFace has not released a list of users whose photos were added to the database, many users may not be aware that their photos are being used for research.

What Legal Rights Do I Have?

Although most states do not have laws requiring entities to obtain permission from citizens before using their images in facial recognition software, some states do have regulations governing the collection of biometric information. Illinois has some of the strictest laws in the nation governing resident privacy and biometric data.

According to Business Insider, Illinois residents whose images have been included in the MegaFace database are covered by the Biometric Information Privacy Act. The Act was instituted in 2008 and allows residents whose fingerprints, face scans, or other biometric data was used without their permission to seek financial penalties.

MegaFace has reportedly been downloaded by companies including Google, Mitsubishi Electric, Amazon, Tencent, and SenseTime,  as well as more than 300 research groups. The database is also available for public download.

While the photographs included in the database are not labeled with peoples’ names, the data attached to the images has not been anonymized. The images each contain a numerical identifier that may be traced back to the account of the original user who posted the image.

Illinois residents whose images have been included in the MegaFace database without their consent may be entitled to sue for $1,000 for each violation. If residents are able to prove that the use of their images reckless, they may be entitled up to $5,000 for each image.

Join a Free Flickr Facial Recognition Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you had a Flickr account and you uploaded pictures onto that account, those images may have been given to MegaFace and used for facial recognition purposes without your permission, and you may qualify to join this Flickr facial recognition class action lawsuit investigation.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.