Who will protect user facial privacy?, Mini Program Miaoya Camera Becomes Popular, Generating AI Photos for 9.9 RMB | Usage | Paper Reporter | Information | Generation | Photos | Camera | User
Generative AI technology is changing more industries. As domestic large model products penetrate the vertical industry on the B-end, the mini program Miaoya Camera, which is closer to C-end users, quickly became popular once it was launched.
Recently, an AI camera called "Miao Ya" that generates professional texture blockbusters online has mastered the traffic password to ignite social circles. For only 9.9 yuan, users can upload 21 photos and generate a set of AI photos that are comparable to Naive Blue and the hippocampus. Users can also upload the pictures to social platforms such as WeChat Moments and Weibo.
Less than half a month after its launch, the Second Duck Camera team announced that multiple counterfeit "Miao Duck Cameras" products, accounts, software, and mini programs imitating the official channels of "Miao Duck Cameras" have appeared on the internet recently, posing serious information security risks to consumers. At the same time, users have found that as the number of users increases, it takes several hours for users to generate photos, which is a testament to the popularity of the Miao Duck camera.
After its rapid rise to fame, Miaoya Camera has faced a "privacy" controversy. Behind the controversy lies concerns among netizens about personal privacy and security: how to handle photos uploaded by users? Will the application use user photos for other purposes? If the uploaded photos are used for AI model training, will some facial features of the user appear in the generated images elsewhere? And these are not only the problems faced by Miao Ya cameras, but also more camera applications that require uploading photos.
Charge 9.9 yuan, thousands of people queuing up
In the past six months, large model products represented by ChatGPT have been on the rise, and domestic enterprises have also sparked a "hundred model war". Against this backdrop, the Miao Ya Camera began internal testing in June, with the slogan "Let everyone have their own AI photographer".
To open the Miaoya Camera mini program, first upload a frontal photo, and then add at least 20 additional photos. At this step, the system will prompt whether the photos meet the standards and the percentage of users who have uploaded photos that exceed the quality. Users can choose to add more photos to make the "digital avatar" effect better. After uploading the photos, the user needs to follow the Miaoya camera official account and complete the payment process. The standard price is 29.9 yuan, and the limited time discount is 9.9 yuan. Once the purchase is successful, no refund is supported.
From user sharing, it can be seen that after uploading photos, users can obtain different styles of photos, such as business photos, fashion posters, ID photos, travel photos, etc. The generated photos all have watermarks, and additional fees are required to download high-definition photos or original photos. And when the reporter from Pengpai News tried the program, he found that generating photos is expected to take 3 hours and 25 minutes, with 1308 people in front.
With the increasing number of users, the long waiting time has been criticized by paying users. Users are also slightly dissatisfied with the need to upload 21 photos and the poor template effect. Some netizens pointed out that during peak hours at night, there were 4000 to 5000 people queuing up, waiting for more than ten hours. Another netizen said, "The beauty is so beautiful that it doesn't look like me, but there is also a faint shadow of me."
In the reporter's circle of friends, a researcher who paid attention to the Internet industry shared his three points of experience: "First, the background algorithm of Miaoya camera should be average, with a long time and poor accuracy; second, there are few templates, especially for men, with low participation, but this should be a good application scenario in the future; third, after this wave of popularity, Miaoya has accumulated data and income, and can continue to tell stories and finance in the future."
In response to the voices of netizens, Miaoya Camera stated on July 17th that the photo effect has not yet reached the ideal state of the team, and will continue to optimize "Titian"'s ability; Miaoya Camera is not the enemy of photographers. We will soon initiate an internal testing collaboration with the photographer invitation system. Through Miaoya, photographers can create their own style and aesthetics into templates, allowing more people to enjoy their creativity.
Who is the company behind the Miao Duck camera?
According to the Tianyancha app, the main company of Miaoya Camera is Unordered Network Technology Co., Ltd., established in 2006. The company is mainly engaged in software and information technology services, with a registered capital of 55.2 million US dollars. Its legal representative, Zhang Long, has multiple companies under his name. Zhang Long is also the legal representative, executive director, and general manager of Youku Video Media Technology Co., Ltd; Feng Yunle, the supervisor of Unordered Network Technology Co., Ltd., also serves as a supervisor for multiple Alibaba based companies.
What is the relationship between Wuxu Network Technology Co., Ltd. and Alibaba? A person from Alibaba's entertainment industry told Paper News that the entrepreneurial project team started making Miaoya cameras in January this year and completed version 1.0 of Miaoya in July. With the popularity of Miaoya cameras, the team hopes to maintain a "low profile" while being happy.
Controversy over whether to protect user privacy and data security
The popularity of the Miao Duck camera has once again sparked discussions among users about the risks associated with AI software. A security researcher once told a reporter from Pengpai News that information obtained by AI face changing software from users is mainly portrait images. From a technical perspective, it does not have more risks than other photo uploading apps. However, if such software requests more portrait usage authorization from users, it means that users will be exposed to more risks.
For the Miao Duck camera, Song Yuhao, co-founder and independent security researcher of the well-known white hat company KEEN in China, told Pengpai News reporters that to check whether an application is legitimate, two aspects can be considered: first, whether the photos uploaded by users will be stored, how long they will be stored, and whether there is a risk of leakage of photos and user information during transmission and storage; The second question is whether the uploaded photos will be used for AI model training.
"In the first scenario, if the user's photos and related user information are leaked due to external attacks or internal illegal personnel, they may flow into the black industry, be used for targeted fraud, or other criminal activities. In the second scenario, if the user's photos are used for model training without the user's knowledge, some facial features of the user may appear in generated images elsewhere, which the user may not want to happen," said Song Yuhao.
A reporter from Pengpai News found that the privacy policy of Miaoya Camera does not directly provide a clear time limit for storage. Instead, "we will only retain your personal information for the period necessary to achieve the purpose stated in this policy, unless there are mandatory retention requirements by law.".
Miaoya Camera pointed out that personal information generated or collected within the territory of the People's Republic of China is stored on servers within China. Unless obtaining the individual consent of the user, or in order to fulfill the contract with the user, or to comply with the obligations stipulated by laws and regulations, the application will not provide any personal information of the user overseas.
It is worth noting that some netizens previously pointed out on social media that in the initial version of the user agreement of Miaoya Camera, users were required to authorize Miaoya Camera to enjoy a permanent, irrevocable, transferable, transferable, free, and non exclusive license worldwide, allowing Miaoya Camera to use user content in any form, media, or technology. This "domineering clause" has caused dissatisfaction among netizens.
On July 20th, the Miaoya Camera team responded by saying, "We have received feedback from users regarding the Miaoya user agreement. The original agreement was incorrect, and we have made modifications based on Miaoya's actual situation. We solemnly promise that the photos you upload will only be used for digital avatar production, will not be extracted or used for recognition or other purposes, and will be automatically deleted after the avatar production is completed."
Nevertheless, an anonymous security insider told Paper that they had already decided not to use the Miaoya mini program in the first step when using it. "I have found that the first requirement for uploading images is to have clear and frontal features, which is almost the level required for ID photos. We have never uploaded such high-definition and code free photos on social media. Secondly, in the future, AI technology will become increasingly powerful, and you don't know to what extent a photo will be used in the future, nor do you know the other party's good or bad intentions. Finally, I hold a very cautious attitude towards the application made by new companies, and I will not upload my own high-definition photos, let alone the small program has a 'domineering agreement' before."
According to surging journalists, there are many regulations on Internet applications in terms of user privacy protection and user information preservation. For example, the Cybersecurity Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that if a network product or service has the function of collecting user information, its provider should clearly indicate and obtain consent from the user; If it involves user personal information, it shall also comply with the provisions of this Law and relevant laws and administrative regulations on the protection of personal information; The Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China clarifies the obligations of personal information processors to comply with regulations and ensure personal information security. It requires them to develop internal management systems and operating procedures in accordance with regulations, take corresponding security technical measures, and designate a responsible person to supervise their personal information processing activities; The Consumer Rights and Interests Protection Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that operators and their staff must strictly keep confidential the collected personal information of consumers, and shall not disclose, sell or illegally provide it to others. Business operators should take technical and other necessary measures to ensure information security and prevent the leakage or loss of consumer personal information.
In addition, the Interim Measures for the Management of Generative Artificial Intelligence Services will come into effect on August 15, 2023. The Measures are not only an important requirement for promoting the healthy development of generative artificial intelligence, but also a practical need to prevent risks in generative artificial intelligence services. It is clear that providers of generative artificial intelligence services should carry out training data processing activities such as pre training and optimization training in accordance with the law, using data and basic models from legitimate sources; Those involving intellectual property rights shall not infringe upon the intellectual property rights enjoyed by others in accordance with the law; If personal information is involved, personal consent or other circumstances that comply with laws and administrative regulations should be obtained.
However, a legal representative pointed out to a reporter from Pengpai News, "The above regulations are only for reference, and the application of relevant regulations needs to be judged based on specific circumstances."
