So, You FaceApp’d. What Now?

Sometimes everyone bands together to make something very viral, very quickly. This week’s edition, FaceApp, has privacy watchdogs and some in D.C. worried about a Trojan horse.

Not part of the craze? FaceApp is an AI-powered photo-editing tool. Its face-aging feature triggered a surge in downloads...and now FaceApp has access to over 150 million people’s faces and names.

All fun and games, no ? ¿ ?

The app’s terms of service grant it access to all uploaded photos in perpetuity, which took on greater significance after Twitter sleuths pointed out FaceApp's parent company is based in St. Petersburg, Russia. The DNC, scarred from a previous data security run-in with Russian actors, told staff to avoid using FaceApp.

But...FaceApp’s creators told TechCrunch that all photo editing happens in the cloud and that no data is transferred back to Russian servers. So long as you’re willing to let the app have your face, then you’re clear to continue FaceApp’ing.