X, formerly Twitter has updated its privacy policy and is now planning to collect users’ biometric data, job and education history, CNN reported. ”Based on your consent, we may collect and use your biometric information for safety, security, and identification purposes,” the company said in its new policy which takes effect from September 29.
As of now, biometrics are for premium users and they will be given an option to submit their government ID and an image in order to add a verification layer. The biometric data might be extracted from both the ID and the images for matching purposes.
”This will additionally help us tie, for those that choose, an account to a real person by processing their government-issued ID. This will also help X fight impersonation attempts and make the platform more secure,” the company said.
The report also adds that apart from biometric information, the social media site might also ask for a user’s job and education history.
“We may collect and use your personal information (such as your employment history, educational history, employment preferences, skills and abilities, job search activity and engagement, and so on) to recommend potential jobs for you, to share with potential employers when you apply for a job, to enable employers to find potential candidates, and to show you more relevant advertising,” the updated privacy policy states.
The microblogging platform does not define ”biometric” in its policy, but the term generally refers to automated technologies, including facial recognition software, fingerprint taking, and palm and iris scanning, used for authenticating and verifying unique human body characteristics.
A few days back, X introduced a feature to post job listings for verified organizations on the microblogging platform. These moves come as Elon Musk is focused on making X an ”everything app.”
