Meta AI on WhatsAppโ Now Fuels targeted Adsโ – Here’s How โto Optโ Out
San Josรฉ, Costa Rica – Users engagingโ with Meta AI withinโ WhatsApp might potentially be unknowingly contributing to more personalized advertising acrossโข Meta’s โplatforms, includingโ Facebook and Instagram. โฃWhile โnot automatic,conversations with the AI assistant can be used to tailor ads related toโข discussed topics – from travel โฃplans to health concerns – ifโข a userโข links their WhatsApp account toโฃ other Metaโข services. This revelation has prompted questionsโค about user privacy and control over data, leading many to seek ways to deactivate โคthe feature.
The integration of Meta AI into whatsapp, allowing for queries and image โgeneration, comes with a privacy trade-off.Accordingโฃ to Meta, data collected from both written and spoken interactions with the AI serves as a signal for โadvertising personalization. A query about vacations, as an example, โcould trigger promotions for hotels or tourist destinations in aโข user’s Facebook or Instagram โฃfeed. However, Meta clarifiesโ that thisโข data collection only applies to users who connect their WhatsApp accountโข with other โMeta platforms.
Why Deactivate?
The core concern revolves around the potential for highly targeted advertising based on sensitive,โข personal conversations. While Meta states the change doesn’t apply to those who don’t use Meta AI, andโข interactions โaren’tโข used forโ ads if WhatsApp isn’t linked to other Meta accounts, many โusers prefer to keep โฃtheir conversations privateโข and avoid even the possibility ofโ ad personalization. Deactivating Meta AI within WhatsApp offers a direct way to limit data collectionโค and maintain greater control over personal facts.
How to Deactivate Meta โAI on whatsapp:
Currently, there isn’t a โsingle “off” switch for Meta โฃAI within WhatsApp. Theโ process involves leaving โtheโข specific chat where you’ve initiated a conversation with the AI.
- Open WhatsApp: โLaunch the WhatsApp submission โขon your mobile device.
- Locate the โAI Chat: Find the chat thread where you’ve been interacting โwith Meta AI. Itโ will be labeled as โa chat โwithโ Meta AI.
- Exit the chat: simply navigate away from the Meta AI chat.As of now, this prevents further interaction and data collection from that specific instance.
Meta confirmed that users who do not utilize โMeta AI will not beโข subject to โthis advertisingโฃ personalization. The company โขalso stated โคthat this change cannot be โคcompletely disabled, but choosing not to engage withโ the assistant directly impacts the ads a user โwill see.
(Source: Grupo de Diarios Amรฉrica (GDA), โasโ reported byโค La Naciรณn)
