
Google collects face data now. What it means and how to opt out - close04
https://www.cnet.com/how-to/google-collects-face-data-now-what-it-means-and-how-to-opt-out/
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dang
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20932987](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20932987)

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kohtatsu
I think flagging this as dupe is overkill. Lots of people would have missed it
3 months ago, and perhaps some new-year goals include becoming more privacy
conscious.

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judge2020
This is the meat of the article:

> Do Google and the others store my facial data in the cloud? Sort of.
> Although Google is quick to point out that face profiles are stored and
> processed on the Nest Hub Max itself, it admits that it occasionally pulls
> facial data to the cloud to help improve "product experience." Google
> insists any facial data that winds up in the cloud is deleted after it's
> finished processing it.

So I went digging around for a source to this claim, and found this[0]:

> Do Nest Hub Max’s camera sensing features ever send video or images from my
> home to Google? Yes, but only as part of the Face Match setup process, and
> not after you've completed setup.

So this is a no to "occasionally" pulling facial data.

0:
[https://store.google.com/us/category/google_nest_privacy](https://store.google.com/us/category/google_nest_privacy)

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propogandist
Nest is governed by Google's catch-all privacy policy. So the data they upload
to the cloud can be used across the entire Google ecosystem. If you're using
Google Photos, they already have tremendous amount of data on you, so this
isn't anything particularly new.

This will, however, enable a new ad-targeting method where they can ensure the
ads delivered are specific to the individual using an otherwise shared device.

Additionally, this "feature" can be combined with the always listening
capabilities of Google spyware to definitively link your audio profile to your
facial profile. This will enable Google to build an index of voice
fingerprints, with facial profiles that can be used in the future in some
capacity... like being able to isolate your voice in a room, once a camera
detects your face, or vice versa.

This all can be spun as an "improved product experience".

edit-

there's no need to send video or an image to Google everytime, if there's a
unique identifier mapped to your facial data. Only that will need to be sent
up to Google and the statement you have quoted would technically be correct.

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judge2020
The cnet quote I still can't find a source for so I have no idea if Google
even said they would use it for "product experience"; Regardless, that page I
linked also states:

> In addition, we keep the video and images that power these features separate
> from advertising and don’t use them for ad personalization.

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judge2020
> Other devices require some kind of trigger, such as touching the screen or
> pressing a physical button, as with the iPhone ($900 at Amazon) when
> activating FaceID.

I mean not really, getting a notification or an alarm activating will also
wake the screen and FaceID will start scanning.

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thdrdt
If the user agreed with Google's conditions others who are entering the
environment where the device is located might not.

I personally wouldn't feel at ease in a house with a 'smart' device that
listens and sees everything all the time.

Those devices are a great way to keep some friends and family away.

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ocdtrekkie
At Christmas, I unplugged my parents Google Home Hub as a condition of my
participation.

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tyri_kai_psomi
Did you tell them to all turn off their phones and remove their batteries,
too?

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coldcode
If your business is selling data or access to customer eyeballs, anything and
everything is fair game, unless there is some law or other obstacle in the
way.

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codingdave
So does the Playstation 4, if you have a camera attached. I'm sure there are
other devices that do this as well. But that is all the more reason to be
aware of it, and decide for yourself whether that is OK with you or not.
Hopefully the concerns will remain an active topic of discussion so that
device creators keep making it an easy-to-change setting to turn it off.

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ebg13
I don't see what the big deal is. If you don't like it, just don't have a
face.

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benguild
Since when is HN becoming Reddit

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dang
Since before it was HN:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13852](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13852)

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tcd
Your face already exists in a plethora of databases anyway if you've existed
the last 10+ years. I'm not saying you shouldn't be concerned but don't be
mis-guided this is a recent development.

It's not. You as a human generate an immense amount of JSON data as you
interact with the world until you die (and, possibly still after).

We're all just one big JSON object now :)

Cheers and happy new year, be tracked some more.

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thdrdt
The recent development is that it now can happen in your home.

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trhway
The recent development is that people started willingly install those devices
in their own homes. There is "How i stopped worrying and learned to love the
Big Brother" somewhere here.

