Check Facebook’s access to your camera roll

The short version

Permission

Which photos can the app access through your phone’s photo-library permission?

Processing

Have you agreed to a feature that analyses media or sends it for cloud processing?

Training

What does the service say it may use to improve its AI?

A permission screen alone does not establish that an entire library has been uploaded or used for training.

01 / Inside Facebook

Review camera-roll suggestions

Meta describes camera-roll sharing suggestions as opt-in and says you can turn them off. Its June 2026 update reaffirmed that choice. Meta: June 2026 feature update

1. Open settings in the Facebook mobile app. Look for camera-roll sharing suggestions. If settings has a search box, try camera roll.
2. Read each control’s description and turn off the suggestions you do not want.
3. If your screen separately offers cloud processing, review that choice too. Do not assume another switch covers it, or turn a feature on just to inspect it.

02 / On your phone

Choose which photos the app can access

Camera is a different permission. It concerns taking pictures and recording video, rather than access to existing photos. Google’s permission definitions

A system photo picker may still let you choose individual pictures without giving the app broad library access. Seeing photos in that picker does not prove the app can read everything. Apple: limited photo-library access; Android: selected photos and videos

03 / One last check

Reopen settings to confirm your choice

Check that the options you chose are still displayed. There is no need to upload a test photo or enable AI editing. This confirms the displayed setting, not what happened to media already uploaded.

What Meta says about AI use

Meta says camera-roll suggestions are private until you choose to share them. It says camera-roll photos and videos are not used for ad targeting. Separately, it says they are not used to improve AI unless you publish them or share them in interactions with an AI feature. Meta: camera-roll suggestions and 2026 rollout

Its US and Canada announcement also specifically flags choosing AI editing. Read the explanation shown before agreeing to an AI feature. Meta: US and Canada announcement

What this check does not do

• Establish that previously shared or uploaded media has been deleted.
• Disable every AI, advertising or personalization use across Meta.
• Prevent someone you share with from making a copy.

We could not establish a current deletion timetable for previously uploaded camera-roll media after disabling the feature. We therefore make no promise that cloud copies disappear immediately or after a set number of days.

Other-business activity is a separate control family. Meta announced changes to these controls in June 2026, with rollout varying by country. They are not a camera-roll or universal AI opt-out. Meta: activity from other businesses

Availability depends on your account and region

Meta announced US and Canada availability in October 2025, EU and UK availability in April 2026, and an expansion to further countries in August 2026. Those announcements do not establish availability for every account. Meta: US and Canada announcement; Meta: camera-roll suggestions and 2026 rollout

Sources & references

Original documentation behind this guide, last checked October 29, 2026. A source check is not necessarily a change to the advice.

1. Meta: June 2026 feature update

   Camera-roll suggestions remain opt-in and can be turned off.

2. Meta: camera-roll suggestions and 2026 rollout

   Feature description, AI-use distinction and regional expansion. Includes the August 31 update.

3. Meta: US and Canada announcement

   October 2025 rollout and the distinction around AI editing and sharing.

4. Facebook: camera-roll help

   Linked by Meta. Login was required during this review; exact current menu placement remains unconfirmed.

5. Apple: control access to information in apps

   iPhone privacy-permission settings.

6. Apple: limited photo-library access

   How access to selected photos and videos works.

7. Google: change Android app permissions

   App-permission steps and the distinction between camera and photo access.

8. Android: selected photos and videos

   Version and app requirements for partial media access.

9. Meta: activity from other businesses

   A separate personalization control family with country-dependent rollout, not a camera-roll switch.

Change history

If a label or policy has changed, tell us what you found. Please do not send private photos, passwords or account details.