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Adobe is one of the leading legacy enterprise software companies embracing generative AI and making it accessible to users through its proprietary (and enterprise-safe) Firefly AI image generation model, Generative Fill in Photoshop, and other next-generation AI capabilities. , AI Assistant for customer experience software and more are available today.
However, the company’s Progen AI stance has sparked backlash among some users and Adobe Stock contributors. And recently, across Gen AI technologies. It is receiving more and more critics and doubts.Adobe is in hot water over its new “Terms of Service” (ToS) language that users must agree to before continuing to use the app.
(The ToS doesn’t actually mention AI, except for a mention of “machine learning” and many other programs that can be used to train AI models, and a provision that AI models cannot be trained on Adobe software.)
The Adobe ToS, which was sent out this week to many customers of the Adobe Creative Cloud Suite (more than 20 million users worldwide), is in the following languages:
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Updated Terms of Use
We have made some changes to the Adobe General Terms of Use that govern your use of our software and services, including the following:
• We have clarified that your content may be accessed through automated and manual methods, including for content review (Sections 2.2 and 4.1).
• Modified the right to delete content from inactive accounts (Section 5.3).
• Updated the period to resolve disputes informally from 60 days to 30 days (Section 14.1).
If you close this window, you will no longer be able to use Adobe apps and services. By clicking “Agree and Continue”, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to the Terms of Use.
A screenshot of the message received when accessing Adobe Firefly on the web is also included below.
Meanwhile Full “Terms of Use” link Once included in the notification, users can go here to read Sections 2.2, 4.1, 5.3, and 14.1 in more detail.
Section 2.2 of the updated Adobe ToS has greatly upset a small number of users on social media, namely X. This section contains:
2.2 Our Access to Your Content. We may access, view and hear Your Content (as defined in Section 4.1 (Content) below) through automated and manual means, but only in a limited manner and only as permitted by law. For example, to provide Services and Software, we may: (A) respond to feedback or support requests; (B) Detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security, legal, or technical issues; (C) enforce the Terms as more fully set forth in Section 4.1 below; Our automated systems may use technologies, such as machine learning, to analyze your Content and Creative Cloud Customer Fonts (as defined in Section 3.10 (Creative Cloud Customer Fonts) below) to improve the Services and Software and your user experience. . Information about how Adobe uses machine learning can be found here. http://www.adobe.com/go/machine_learning
In particular, users agree with Adobe’s claim that Adobe “may access, view, or listen to your content through automated and manual means, using technologies such as machine learning to improve our services and software and your user experience.” I was against it. Many have implicitly admitted to spying on and training AI on their clients’ confidential content, which is protected by non-disclosure agreements or confidentiality provisions/agreements between Adobe users and clients.
Even Hollywood directors like Duncan Jones (moon, source code, warcraft — also the son of the late music icon David Bowie) posted a statement to X knocking the company over its updated ToS contract language (although Jones has since deleted his post). It is reproduced below for the benefit of the public record.
One enterprising user also posted an annotated screenshot to show the language changes from the most recent Adobe ToS to this new ToS, starting in 2023.
However, Section 4.1 states:
“We do not review all content uploaded to the Services and Software, but we may use available technologies, vendors or processes, including manual review, to screen for certain types of unlawful content (e.g. child sexual abuse material) or other offensive content. You can use . Content or behavior (e.g. activity patterns indicative of spam or phishing, or keywords that indicate adult content has been posted outside of the adult wall).”
Ultimately, Adobe wants to give itself the power to analyze and moderate content uploaded to your Creative Cloud account (which Adobe manages) for illegal activity (child abuse, physical abuse, non-consensual pornography, etc.) or ToS violations. It looks like they are trying.
An Adobe spokesperson provided the following statement in response to VentureBeat’s questions about the new ToS and the vocal backlash:
This policy has been in place for several years. As part of our commitment to providing transparency to our customers, Adobe earlier this year added clearer examples of when Adobe can access user content to our Terms of Use. Adobe accesses your content for a variety of reasons, including providing some of the most innovative cloud-based features such as Photoshop Neural Filters and background removal in Adobe Express, and taking action against prohibited content. Adobe does not access, view, or listen to content stored locally on your device.
Additionally, sources close to Adobe say the company technically does not or cannot analyze Adobe file types stored locally on a user’s drive or computer, nor does it analyze content uploaded to Creative Cloud or simply being worked on in networked Adobe apps. He pointed out that this is being done. This mainly arose to provide some of the new Gen AI features such as automated creation backgrounds and removal tools.
Additionally, while Adobe has not committed to not training on user content, in the past it has already trained Firefly and various AI features on content uploaded by contributors to its stock image library, Adobe Stock, and has stated through various channels that this is legitimate. Ethical according to our own ToS for that service.
Nonetheless, with the ambiguity around ToS and the increase in AI content on the web, many people are expressing their desire and intention to cancel their subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud or its software apps. We’ll have to wait and see whether this latest backlash, one of a number of ToS updates by many services across the web over the years, will have a significant impact on the company’s business.
