Incident 60: FaceApp Racial Filters
Entities
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CSETv0 Taxonomy Classifications
Taxonomy DetailsFull Description
FaceApp, which uses facial recognition to change users' expressions and look, received a storm of criticism after releasing its new "black", "white", "Asian" and "Indian" filters. It received backlash on social media who described it as "racist" and "offensive". The photo editing app, which uses neural networks to modify pictures of people while keeping them realistic, was also criticized for the fact that its "hot" filter often lightens the skin of people with darker complexions.
Short Description
FaceApp is criticized for offering racist filters.
Severity
Negligible
Harm Distribution Basis
Race
Harm Type
Psychological harm
AI System Description
The facial recognition algorithm used by FaceApp, based on deep generative convolutional neural networks, which can edit selfies using filters and other tools.
System Developer
FaceApp
Sector of Deployment
Arts, entertainment and recreation
Relevant AI functions
Unclear
AI Techniques
Facial recognition, convolutional neural networks
AI Applications
Facial recognition, image generation
Location
Global
Named Entities
FaceApp, Russia
Technology Purveyor
FaceApp
Beginning Date
08/2017
Ending Date
08/2017
Near Miss
Unclear/unknown
Intent
Unclear
Lives Lost
No
Data Inputs
Photos of faces
Incident Reports
Reports Timeline
- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Looks like FaceApp, the new face-morphing craze, already needs a makeover.
Launched in January and hailing from Russia, FaceApp is catching interest for its artificial intelligence technology and intriguing filters that can make you look ol…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
The makers of a face-morphing app have apologised after users accused them of creating a "racist" filter.
FaceApp can change portraits to make people look older, change gender or become "more attractive".
But when users with darker skin ton…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
A viral app that adds filters to users' selfies to change their appearance has backtracked on its latest update after was accused of racism over its new range of ethnic filters.
FaceApp, which uses facial recognition to change users' expres…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
People who actually want to see their faces reflected in their phone screens have been having fun with FaceApp recently, with Facebook and Twitter currently overloaded with images of users sharing what they look like young, old and "hot" as…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Twitter/Terrance AB Johnson
It happened—a tech company did a bad thing again. This time, it's the super popular face-morphing app called, wait for it…FaceApp.
For some reason unknown to me, FaceApp went gangbusters this week after launching…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
The creator of an app which changes your selfies using artificial intelligence has apologised because its “hot” filter automatically lightened people’s skin.
FaceApp is touted as an app which uses “neural networks” to change facial characte…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
A selfie app that renders users’ faces in varying styles removed one of its filters following criticism that it Whitewashed the faces of people of color.
Mic reports that after receiving complaints, FaceApp developers first changed the func…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
FaceApp: Experts have privacy concerns about popular face transformation app
Updated
FaceApp has gone viral. Why? Because it lets you transform your face in hilarious ways.
But privacy advocates warn you could be giving up much more informa…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Social media is awash right now in selfies with weirdly realistic facial transformations thanks to a viral app, appropriately called “FaceApp.” FaceApp lets users add filters to faces to make them smile, age, and change gender, with a surpr…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Shona Ghosh/Business Insider Beauty filters on popular smartphones turn you paler in selfies
If you own a phone which runs Android, the chances are it has a camera setting you don’t know about.
Popular smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S8…
- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
On Wednesday morning, the photo-editing app FaceApp released new photo filters that change the ethnic appearance of your face.
The app first became popular earlier in 2017 due to its ability to transform people into elderly versions of them…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
FaceApp’s CEO says: “The new controversial filters will be removed in the next few hours.”
You might remember FaceApp — a selfie-editing app that transforms users’ pictures by making them look older, younger, or giving them an artificial sm…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Popular photo filter application, FaceApp, which allows users to take selfies and then add fun filters to them to change their appearance by adding a range of photo filters, faced major backlash after its developers on August 9 rolled out a…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
FaceApp boss Yaroslav Goncharov has defended the new filters. "The ethnicity change filters have been designed to be equal in all aspects."
FaceApp, an app that uses neural networks to transform your selfies in some rather eerie ways, has …

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
FaceApp’s racial filters lived only briefly, but they should never have happened in the first place.
FaceApp
For a brief moment on Wednesday, FaceApp—the app that went viral in April for taking a photo of someone’s face and making them look…
- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Remember FaceApp, the smartphone app that, among other things, allows you to add a filter to your face to make you look younger or older? The one that somehow fascinates every single person you know and encourages them to post photos on the…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
A viral app that added Asian, Black, Caucasian and Indian filters to people's selfies has removed them after being accused of racism.
The update which launched yesterday was met with backlash - with many people criticising it for propagatin…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
AI-powered program allowed users to edit selfies to fit into ‘Caucasian, Asian, Indian or Black’ categories causing outrage and immediate U-turn
Popular AI-powered selfie program FaceApp was forced to pull new filters that allowed users to …

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
This really isn't that hard, people. Just last year, Snapchat apologised for adding an offensive Bob Marley selfie filter to its stable. Now, FaceApp — the silly photo editor you probably downloaded in March and totally forgot about — has o…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
Remember that viral face-filtering app, FaceApp, that was accused of being racist after featuring a filter called "Hot" that actually lightened people's skin](https://www.allure.com/story/faceapp-accused-of-racism-with-skin-whitening-featur…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
FaceApp has removed a number of racially themed photo filters after being accused of racism.
The app, which uses artificial intelligence to edit pictures, this week launched a number of “ethnicity change filters”.
They claimed to show users…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
FaceApp
In recent months, FaceApp has been a fun app you’ve probably seen on your social media feeds, letting you and your friends morph faces to look older, younger, or smiling when you frown. You can even see what you’d look like if you p…

- View the original report at its source
- View the report at the Internet Archive
"New filters: Asian, Black, Caucasian, Indian." WHAT. Update: Faceapp has removed the four new filters.
Remember FaceApp? Back in April, it was a suddenly popular Internet Thing(™) that would make your face look like you were a baby, an old…
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