Meta's Muse Image AI Uses Public Instagram Photos by Default

Meta has launched Muse Image, an AI image generator that can create pictures using faces and content from public Instagram accounts—without notifying the users whose photos are being used. The feature, released Tuesday, allows anyone to tag public profiles and generate AI images that incorporate those people's likenesses.

Privacy advocates are pushing back against the default opt-in approach, arguing that users should have to explicitly consent before their photos become training material for others' AI creations.

Why it matters

This marks a significant expansion of how social media content can be repurposed without explicit user consent. While Meta frames the technology as a personalization tool, it effectively transforms every public Instagram post into potential source material for AI-generated images created by strangers—a use case that wasn't contemplated when most users originally shared their photos.

How the system works

Muse Image, which Meta describes as its "most advanced image generation model yet," can combine multiple reference images in a single prompt. Users can specify particular people, objects, clothing styles, and environments to create highly customized outputs. Meta's promotional materials show examples like researching fashion trends, enhancing foggy photos, and creating stylized portraits.

The technology is currently available in the Meta AI app, Instagram Stories in the United States, and WhatsApp in select countries. Meta plans to expand it to Facebook and add video generation capabilities.

Privacy controls exist but require action

Meta automatically excludes private accounts and profiles belonging to users under 18. Adult users with public accounts can opt out, but they must navigate to the "sharing and reuse" section in settings and toggle off a button that allows content reuse.

Cybersecurity firm Malwarebytes noted in a July 9 blog post that "finding the setting is its own adventure." Privacy company Proton warned that the on and off states of the toggle "look nearly identical at a glance, and it's easy to leave one active by mistake."

The most comprehensive solution is switching Instagram accounts from public to private, which prevents strangers from using profile content as source material. However, this option isn't viable for creators, businesses, or others who need public visibility.

Unanswered questions about children

While Meta prevents users under 18 from being tagged and restricts teens from using the tagging feature, the company hasn't clarified whether children appearing in photos on adults' public accounts could be incorporated into AI-generated images. Proton raised concerns that children depicted in public photos risk having their faces appropriated.

Criticism from privacy experts

Thorin Klosowski, a senior security and privacy activist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said the feature "should absolutely be opt-in for Instagram users."

"It's a new use of the photos they've been posting publicly for years, and certainly wasn't on anyone's mind when they signed up for Instagram years ago," Klosowski stated.

Meta told the Guardian that Muse Image was built "with strong controls and safety guardrails from day one" and includes protections to block policy-violating content. Users can report objectionable AI-generated images by pressing and holding the image and selecting a thumbs-down option.

These details were first reported by the Guardian.