According to a recent report, social media sites, including Facebook, monitor users’ chats and scan for criminal activity. The invasive measures are intended to “ensure the safety of public” and authorities are notified if any suspicious activity is detected.

Chats are screened by sophisticated software that scans for suspicious words or phrase that may indicate that something is amiss, including vulgar language and personal information. The intelligent software also monitors if chats occur between users who do not have an established connection and can detect if there are questionable discrepancies in profile data, such as a noticeable age gap. It also works with a database of phrases and words gleaned from “previously obtained chat records from criminals including sexual predators.”

The processing is run autonomously and Facebook employees are only notified if suspicious content has been flagged, at which point they call the relevant authorities.

“We’ve never wanted to set up an environment where we have employees looking at private communications, so it’s really important that we use technology that has a very low false-positive rate,” said Facebook’s Chief Security Officer, Joe Sullivan.

Although this stance is sure to keep privacy activists at bay, it is unclear whether the scanned chats are kept on database or deleted.

According to a report by Reuters, at least one sexual predator has been brought to justice as a direct result of the scanning software. The social network works with law enforcement where appropriate and deemed necessary.

“We may disclose information pursuant to subpoenas, court orders, or other requests (including criminal and civil matters) if we have a good faith belief that the response is required by law. This may include respecting requests from jurisdictions outside of the United States where we have a good faith belief that the response is required by law under the local laws in that jurisdiction, apply to users from that jurisdiction, and are consistent with generally accepted international standards.

“We may also share information when we have a good faith belief it is necessary to prevent fraud or other illegal activity, to prevent imminent bodily harm, or to protect ourselves and you from people violating our Statement of Rights and Responsibilities. This may include sharing information with other companies, lawyers, courts or other government entities.”

How do you feel about anonymous Facebook employees occasionally reading your private correspondence? Is it a justified means to an end or a needless invasion of privacy?

[Source: Reuters, Mashable]