Pareesa Afreen 
Dec 02, 2025
Meta AI logo is seen in this illustration taken September 28, 2023. — Reuters
Meta Platforms is addressing a viral misinformation storm after a video falsely claimed the company would scan users’ private messages across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp to train its AI.
The false rumour, which circulated widely on TikTok and X, sparked widespread concern about privacy violations.
Meta explained that the change in the privacy policy, effective December 16, 2025, only involves interaction with its AI features, including Gemini-powered assistants.
The clarification further stated that the company has confirmed that private messages with friends and family are not used to train AI unless users themselves voluntarily share the conversations with Meta AI.
"The update mentioned in the viral rumour isn't about DMs at all," a Meta spokesperson said. "It's about how we use people's interactions with our AI features to personalise their experience. Private messages remain encrypted and untouched unless explicitly shared."
The video that sparked the controversy cherry-picked a line from a blog post, "We will soon use your interactions with Meta AI to personalise the content and ads you see," to suggest blanket surveillance.
That ignored Meta's explicit carve-outs for non-AI conversations and longstanding end-to-end encryption on Messenger and WhatsApp.
Meta advises users to avoid invoking AI in sensitive chats and to review privacy settings. One-on-one DMs remain private, but interactions with Meta AI in chats may influence personalised recommendations.
