KeriBlog

Cars, Security & a Peek into my Life

You Have a Facebook Facial Recognition Number

A unique number has been assigned to the face of each account.  From the help page:

Facial Recognition Data – A unique number based on a comparison of the photos you’re tagged in. We use this data to help others tag you in photos.

We currently use facial recognition software that uses an algorithm to calculate a unique number (“template”) based on someone’s facial features, like the distance between the eyes, nose and ears. This template is based on your profile pictures and photos you’ve been tagged in on Facebook

This is “Tag Suggest“.

Last week, I downloaded my Facebook account archive, to see what was included in it (how to here).  Below is my face when I found this face number, imagination going wild.

Because really, Facebook is the world’s largest biometric database.

And its entire contents were not only submitted voluntarily, but tagged and identified as well. Someone is going to sleep laughing each night.

Facebook updated their privacy policy at the end of the summer, to account for some more powerful software, for a better “Tag Suggest”.

Some countries are not okay with this, Germany’s pretty upset. They’ve been pushing back for a while wait, I may have blogged this hang on….. yup here: October ’12. There’s much debate about to who and how access is granted, to this database.

I’m not 100%, and the test I conducted was only so-so, but it appears that in Canada, we can’t turn off “Tag Suggest”.

Here’s the Facebook help page, “Turn OFF Tag Suggest“. It says the last item below is where to disable the feature (purple asterisk).

Below are my settings, “unavailable”.

Ugh. Unavailable. Eye roll.

Here tag this.

 

 

Proof Why to Never Upload a Compromising Image

I use Google / Picasa to publish the photos you see here. I upload them to my Google+ account, then copy the embed code here.

Recently, Google came out with a new feature, “Auto Backup” – on its own, it animates some of my photos, and on the weekend, Google made me this animated gif of my year in photos.

Here’s the problem.

I have my Google+ account organized into months, plus one private folder called, “Holding Tank”.

Days ahead of blogging, I filter photos and upload them to ‘Holding Tank’ until they’re ready to be moved to a public folder.

(the red smudge is masking the authentication key for the private folder.)

Bottom row, second from the left – that’s a private photo.

This one:

So accidentally, a private photo was published.

Proof that the only safe way to keep something protected, is not to upload it at all.

This isn’t dire, that’s me at a Canadian Tire winter tire event I haven’t blogged yet.

I’d guess  Google’s response would be that the animated gif wasn’t public until I made it so, but, if that one photo was at all compromising, I couldn’t use this .gif.

I didn’t even catch this mistake until the day after I’d blogged the gif.

 

 

How to Save Facebook Messages & Chats

To my research, this is the only way to do it, and it’s not elegant.

You can’t pick and choose what chats or messages you want, you must download your entire Facebook account, to get the messages. Really, the whole thing – all photos and videos, all wall posts, all.

First, you’ll need access to the Facebook account, and the email attached to it.

1 – under the gear icon > account settings

2 – bottom of that screen > click Download

You’ll be taken to a page with a green button, “Start my Archive”, click it.

Some time after, you’ll receive an email from Facebook, “your archive is ready”. This link will only work for a few days, for security reasons.

Most Importantly!

This file may contain sensitive and private information, such as: your current address or any past addresses, your cell number, including verified cell numbers you’ve added for security purposes; a credit card; Hidden Wall posts; Deleted and Removed friends; Hidden from News Feed; IP Addresses… this is a valuable file.

Download the file.  It’ll be a .zip, open it up*, and here’s the path to the messages.

The messages are output into one, unformatted, mega HTML page. I know.

Open it in a browser window, and start scrolling.  Copy paste save.

After downloading – delete the email containing the link. Be mindful where you store or send this file, and don’t upload it anywhere.

 

 

Tiiiiis the Season for Natural Disguises

Fa-la-la-la-laaa lala get some.

It’s a Christmas wreath, obscuring the licence plate.

Jokes aside, scammers love this time of year.  People’s hearts are more giving and trusting than usual, because tis the season, and that makes is easier to prey on them.

Stay wary during the holidays… careful what you click, because phishing emails and social media scams; people canvasing for “charity” on the street, and on the phone; you get what I mean.