Facebook has introduced a new CAPTCHA alternative that involves uploading a selfie in order to verify users. The social media site is consistantly trying to improve privacy and tackle online bots that can lead to the spread of fake news. Now, according to a screenshot shared by Twitter user @flexlibris, Facebook has come up with a new alternative verification method, which forces users to upload a selfie of themselves in the hope of reducing the number of bots present on the site.
The new method, which will replace the more traditional CAPTCHA on certain occasions when the app is in use, prompts users to upload a selfie that clearly shows their face. Once uploaded, Facebook will analyze the image in order to verify that it is the user and, when completed, the image in question will be permanently deleted from the company’s servers. Unfortunately for users of the site, though, it appears that they will be locked out of their account until uploaded selfies are analyzed, forcing them to wait. The company is yet to confirm how exactly images are processed in order to confirm their authenticity, however, with Facebook simply confirming that it is an automated process. According to the social media giant, the new photo-based test will be implemented at certain points after any suspicious activity is detected. Included among these points can be anything from creating an account to sending Friend requests, or even setting up ad payments. The new photo test will not replace other authentication methods completely, though. Instead, the new method will be implemented alongside other automated processes, as well as other manual ones. It’s currently unknown when the new authentication strategy began being implemented, but the latest details appear to confirm that a wider rollout of the feature has begun.
The new method isn’t the only photo-based feature introduced recently, though. Just this month the company was met with controversy when it started asking users to upload their nude selfies in order to prevent any cases of revenge porn. The idea behind this feature is that, in that case that a user tries to share a picture that Facebook already has on its servers, it will automatically block the post, therefore preventing any possible uploads of explicit images.