Home / Technology / Meta Alters Terms After AI Scraping Backlash
Meta Alters Terms After AI Scraping Backlash
17 Oct
Summary
- Meta removed language suggesting it could scrape sites for AI training.
- Experts feared this would allow free use of content, overriding robots.txt.
- Meta denies changes to web crawling, cites no change in its methods.
Meta has revised its commercial terms following criticism regarding language that appeared to permit the scraping of website content for AI training. The controversial phrasing, which experts believed could allow the company to use scraped material without compensation and override site-specific blocking instructions, has now been entirely removed from Meta's terms.
Despite the update, Meta has stated that there has been no change to its web crawling practices. A spokesperson reiterated that any suggestions to the contrary are false. The company's latest action involves not only updating its terms but also issuing a new statement to further clarify its position on data usage for AI development.
