Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET's key takeaways Meta could be scanning your camera roll right now. It's using your photos to provide AI-powered suggestions. Check Facebook settings to turn off the features. Meta could be analyzing and retaining your phone's photos without your explicit consent. Some Facebook users have noticed that, within their app settings, Meta automatically switched on two toggles that allow it to access their device's camera roll to offer AI-powered suggestions, including "personalized creative ideas, like travel highlights and collages." Also: How to delete Facebook, Messenger, or Instagram - if you want Meta out of your life The problem? These "camera roll sharing suggestions" features appear to be turned on by default -- even for users who say they never saw a "cloud processing" pop-up from Facebook that asks for permission to enable them. If you did see the pop-up and tapped "Allow" on it, you agreed to Meta's AI Terms of Service and permitted your "media and facial features" to be analyzed by AI. Facebook then uses your camera roll images -- including the dates on them and the presence of people or objects -- to suggest collages, themed albums, recap posts, or AI restyled versions of your pictures. The suggestions are only visible to you, unless you choose to share them, and Meta says the media won't be used for ad targeting. Also: How to protect your privacy from Facebook - and what doesn't work But you're still giving Meta the right to access and retain your camera roll images, and that raises serious privacy concerns, especially for users who never knowingly opted in. ZDNET's editorial director found Meta's "camera roll sharing suggestions" features enabled in her Facebook app without her knowledge. I also noticed they were enabled for me, though I vaguely recall seeing the "cloud processing" pop-up a few weeks ago. I think I dismissed it quickly, but I can't remember whether I tapped Allow or Don't allow. How to stop Facebook from scanning your camera roll If you want to check whether the features are turned on for you -- and possibly turn them off -- here's how. 1. Open the Facebook app The settings you'll want to check can be found in the Facebook mobile app. Grab your iPhone or Android phone. Open the Facebook app. You'll need to be signed into your account. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET 2. Go to the Menu > Settings and Privacy Facebook hides most of its settings in the menu -- the three-line hamburger icon in the bottom corner of the app. Tap the Menu icon in the bottom right corner of the screen. Once the menu opens, look for Settings and Privacy with a gear icon. This will take you directly to Settings. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET 3. Select Settings Once you find and tap Privacy and Settings to expand the dropdown options, tap Settings again. Under Settings and Privacy, tap Settings. Now, scroll down and look for "Camera roll sharing suggestions." Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET 4. Go to Camera roll sharing suggestions Meta placed the toggles that grant it access to your camera roll under the "Camera roll sharing suggestions" setting. You'll need to go there to see if they're on and, if so, switch them off. Look for the option labeled "Camera roll sharing suggestions" and tap it. This will open a preference page with a couple of toggles. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET 5. Turn off both toggles Once you're inside the camera roll sharing suggestions page, notice the two separate switches. If they're blue and the toggle circle is pushed to the right, they're on -- meaning Meta is already processing and retaining your phone's photos. Turn them off so the app can't automatically upload and analyze your camera roll. Find the option labeled "Get camera roll suggestions when you're browsing Facebook." If the switch is on (blue), tap it once to turn it off (gray). This will stop Facebook from using basic camera roll data, such as which videos you've favorited and when photos were taken, to suggest sharing media you haven't yet uploaded. Find the option labeled "Get creative ideas made for you by allowing camera roll cloud processing." If the switch is on (blue), tap it once to turn it off (gray). This will stop Facebook from continuously uploading media from your camera roll -- and using details like time, location, themes, and the presence of people or objects -- to generate personalized creative ideas such as recaps and AI restylings. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET FAQs Why is Facebook cloud-processing my device's camera roll? Meta is uploading and analyzing your camera roll photos and videos, even ones you haven't posted, in its cloud in order to generate AI-powered suggestions like collages, monthly recaps, themed albums, or AI-restyled versions of your images. Where is this feature being tested? Meta has confirmed the feature is a test, saying, "We're exploring ways to make content sharing easier for people on Facebook by testing suggestions of ready-to-share and curated content from a person's camera roll." The test is currently available in the US and Canada, but it's not available in Illinois or Texas due to those states' privacy laws. Did Facebook ask for my consent before turning this on? Meta is showing a pop-up asking users if they want to enable cloud processing, but some users claim they haven't seen it. Instead, they found the toggles in their settings already switched on by default, raising questions about whether clear consent was given. Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Can I remove my photos once they've been uploaded? ZDNET's sister site, CNET, reports that Meta pulls from your newer pictures (roughly the last 30 days) and if you disable the feature, your uploaded photos will be deleted after 30 days. The only way to confirm is by downloading your Facebook account data. Why is this a potential privacy issue? It expands Meta's reach beyond the content you've chosen to upload and share online -- into your private, unposted photos and videos. For many, that's a major red flag and a line they're not comfortable crossing, understandably so. Also: What Zuckerberg's 'personal superintelligence' sales pitch leaves out Even if Meta is asking for consent to access your camera roll in order to analyze your phone's photos and provide AI-powered suggestions, the company could have done a better job of being clear and explicit about what it's trying to do. How many users, like me, simply dismissed the consent pop-up without fully realizing what they'd just agreed to? Show more