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The Meta way: X is now also training its AI with your data – not that it would tell you

29.7.2024

Translation: Patrik Stainbrook

Elon Musk’s social media platform X is «optimising» its AI algorithms, including the chatbot Grok, by feeding it user tweets. The problem? X does this without asking you – if you want to stop it, you’ll have to take action yourself.

Quietly and discreetly, X changed its terms and conditions back in September 2023. Now they’re coming into effect: profile data and tweets you make on the platform can now be fed to the AI. On the one hand, this is meant to improve the algorithms, allowing you to discover even more content that might interest you. And then there’s the chatbot Grok, a large-language model with deep learning that can access data in real time. However, this service is only available to Premium Plus users. It’s also unclear whether X is passing this data on to advertising customers – in this respect, X’s collection looks less problematic than on other platforms. However, this isn’t certain. Meanwhile, regarding Grok – as with other LLMs – there’s the problem of misinformation.

Opt-out: better to ask for forgiveness than permission

Just like Meta, who has started doing the same, X doesn’t ask for permission. Your silence is interpreted as consent. If you don’t want your data to be used for Grok and the like, you have to take action yourself. Note: you can currently only do so via a browser. In the mobile app, there are currently no options for effectively countering the terms and conditions.

How to remove the check mark

This link will take you directly to the right menu. Alternatively, click on Settings and Data under More, then on Data Protection and Security. In the Grok menu, uncheck «Allow your posts as well as your interactions, inputs and results with Grok to be used for training and fine-tuning».

You can stop collection under Grok in the Privacy settings.
Source: Florian Bodoky

Problem solved – X has announced this option will also be available in the app «soon».

EU keeping quiet (for now)

Meta has also recently started using data from Instagram and Facebook for its artificial intelligence. Following numerous complaints, the Irish Data Protection Commission intervened and declared that Meta must offer an opt-in solution. It now has to actively ask its users for permission. Meta didn’t like this, which is why it’s temporarily stopping its AI programme in Europe.

However, due to possible violations of the GDPR, it seems likely that X will also be caught in the EU’s crosshairs.

Header image: Shutterstock

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Florian Bodoky

Editor

Florian.Bodoky@digitecgalaxus.ch

I've been tinkering with digital networks ever since I found out how to activate both telephone channels on the ISDN card for greater bandwidth. As for the analogue variety, I've been doing that since I learned to talk. Though Winterthur is my adoptive home city, my heart still bleeds red and blue.

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