Shelley Seale is a journalist, content creator, award-winning writer, author, publication designer, editor and communications professional. She can be reached at www.shelleyseale.com. and Twitter
What’s Happening:
The photo editing app FaceApp has gone viral (again) due to features that allow users to “age themselves” through the software that enhances a photo to show what that person will look like decades into the future. Like many viral sensations, FaceApp went viral after many influencers and celebrities posted their old-age photos on social media with the hashtag #AgeChallenge.
Why it Matters:
FaceApp, developed by a Russian team, first went viral two years ago with its face-altering technology that showed a user what they would look like as a different gender. At one point, however, it came under scrutiny and controversy with its ability to change a person’s photo from one ethnicity to another, resulting in claims of digital “blackfacing.” With the current surge in popularity, other issues are coming to the foreground including security issues.
