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?

'Facebook Music' Will Violate Your Privacy Even More

If you're the type of social media user who gets creeped out by Facebook's facial recognition technology, check-ins and photo-sharing, you're going to hate the website's upcoming music service.

Rumor has it that Facebook is teaming up with digital music provider Spotify to create a never-before-seen social music experience. Of course, music has always been a social experience: something we all enjoy experiencing and sharing with others. Now, Zuckerberg and company are taking that experience online.

As Gigaom explains, Facebook seeks to capitalize on the changing shape of the music industry. To that end, the left-hand column of your homepage will now feature a Music tab. Your Music Dashboard will give you a snapshot of all your current (and past) songs on a range of music websites, (so far) including Pandora, iTunes and Spotify.

Facebook Music will share recommendations from friends. It will tell you what they're listening to. And it will tell them all about the embarrassing Miley Cyrus fest you had late last night.

Of course, the big privacy question remains: Will Facebook Music be opt-in or opt-out, like so many of Zuckerberg's other boundary-pushing projects? Only time will tell.