Thread by @realAminAyarnah

FaceApp Challenge: Is Viral FaceApp a Wakeup Call?
Kindly find the below thread👇👇

Background

FaceApp is a Russian Start-up based in St. Petersburg. Although the application began in Russia, TechCrunch reports that the company is currently using Google and Amazon-owned servers in the United States. Some stakeholders in the software industry have argued that..

the origin of FaceApp has spurred concerns for data privacy. @faceapp_ai.

FaceApp-AI Face Editor Value Proposition

Viral FaceApp-AI Face Editor has equipped people with the power to deliberately alter their facial expressions, looks, and future facial appearance. This seems .

exciting and hilarious, especially possessing the power to facially experience how one will look like in future. This App has rather gone viral on social media Apps such as @Twitter, @instagram , and @facebook . More than 100million mobile phone users have downloaded the App from

Google Play Store and the App is recently the top-ranked App on the iOS App Store in 121 countries according to App Annie. Firms could use their logo transitions or logo development history to engage their consumers on social media. @AppStore @GooglePlay

FaceApp Terms and Conditions Concerns

Notwithstanding, the terms and conditions of the application, which was initially launched in 2017 raise crucial privacy issues worthy of consideration in almost every jurisdiction on the globe. The section that is worthy of concern is the.

User Content terms and conditions.
It states that "You grant FaceApp a perpetual, irrevocable, nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, fully-paid, transferable sub-licensable license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, ..

publicly perform and display your user content and any name, username or likeness provided in connection with your User Content in all media formats and channels now known or later developed without compensation to you".
While according to FaceApp’s terms of service people still

own their own “user content” (read face), the firm owns a never-ending and irrevocable royalty-free license to do almost anything they wish with them. It has drawn in celebrities like the Jonas Brothers, Ludacris and Kevin Hart to the “FaceApp Challenge”...

This App is run by Yaroslav Goncharov (CEO) who asserted that “even though the core research and development team is located in Russia, the user data is not transferred to Russia”. Then again FaceApp CEO has opined that “most images are deleted from our servers within 48 hours..

from the upload date” and “we don’t sell or share any user data with any third parties”. Most users have confirmed their refusal to grant permission for the App to access their photos or gallery.
Yaroslav in a published statement contends that "All FaceApp features are available

without logging in, and you can log in only from the settings screen. As a result, 99% of users don't log in; therefore, we don’t have access to any data that could identify a person”.
More importantly, Yaroslav might be completely telling the truth but he does not control what .

might transpire in the future. In other jurisdictions such as the United States of America, Senator Charles E. Schumer has written a letter to the director of FBI and Chairman of Federal Trade Commission expressing his concerns regarding the aforementioned App....

A Strategic Call on Ghanaian Stakeholders

This is a crucial moment for The Data Protection Commission (DPC) to steadily monitor and evaluate issues emanating from FaceApp-AI Face Editor. In actuality, the Ghanaian citizenry are also consumers of the FaceApp-AI Face Editor and

the primary onus of DPC is to protect the privacy of the individual and personal data by regulating the processing of personal information.
Then again, this trending issue is a wakeup call for all international and domestic media houses who act as gatekeepers and editors in the

media arena, to take a keen interest in issues of data protection in the software industry. Consumer protection agencies, educational institutions, civil societies among others are not exonerated from taking a keen interest in issues regarding data protection and data security..

sensitization. Citizens are also cautioned to be vigilant and circumspective in downloading and using Apps that require personal data.
Ultimately, due to the legal issues emanating from FaceApp, application-oriented companies in the financial, health industry among others should

pay attention to issues in the light of terms of service, data privacy and country of origin of user application. Written by Amin Ayarnah |Accra, Ghana| |Twitter: @realAminAyarnah| linkedin.com/pulse/faceapp-…

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