Facebook Warned Over Facial Rec in Europe

The government of Germany and the European Union have warned Facebook that it has until November 7 to bring its facial recognition software into conformity with their privacy laws. If the necessary changes are not made, the social networking company will face legal action, according to a government lawyer.

The software in question helps users identify other Facebook members through photographs. The facial recognition technology is used to quickly tag photos, and includes an opt-out option.

In Berlin, however, the popular software voilates German and European data protection laws. That's why Germany has accused Facebook of collecting user information without their consent.

This August, the government lawyer requested that Facebook delete all the data collected by its biometric facial recognition application. The company refused to comply.

You might recall that Germany previously railed against Google because of its extensive Street View network. However, Street View, much like Facebook's photo tags, is apparently popular among the citizens of Germany. So, where does the burden of privacy fall?