Barbie has taken the entertainment world by storm, captivating everyone’s attention in just a few days. Among the various viral trends surrounding the Barbie movie, a web app that transforms users into dolls using filters has become massively popular. However, we must caution you against using it for a good reason.
Whether you’re on TikTok or any other social platform, you’ve likely come across countless posts related to Barbie, often featuring filters that allow you to experience a doll-like transformation. While many of these filters are harmless fun, there’s one web application you should avoid: BaiRBIE.
Barbie playing with AI
This particular application, presented as a simple website and having no affiliation with Mattel, utilizes artificial intelligence, which is a common trend in today’s technology. However, the concerning aspect arises when you realize that the same AI that brings amusement can compromise your personal information.
The legal conditions of using this app are far from satisfactory. Buried within the fine print, which is often overlooked by users, are troubling clauses. For instance, the app stipulates that in case of any disputes, the laws applied will be those of Israel. Considering the differences in legal standards between Europe and Israel, this raises serious concerns. Additionally, it is specified that all users of the app are assumed to be over 16 years of age, yet this crucial information is not easily visible or explicitly stated in a clear manner.
Becoming Barbie… at what cost?
On the surface, the application seems to offer what it promises. However, our tests have yielded quite disappointing results. We observed that the Barbies generated by the app look better than the Kens. For instance, when attempting to create a Ken version of Sylvester Stallone based on an old photo from his Rocky days, the outcome was less convincing, lacking accomplished hair details.
The issue lies in the fact that when users feed their photos into the app, they are essentially feeding the AI, but it remains uncertain which AI precisely. Most likely, multiple tools are gathering as many photos as possible to sell the databases to the highest bidder.
Upon entering the website, it prompts users to choose between becoming “Bairbie” or Ken and asks for selections like hair color, skin color, and race (although the latter is optional), as well as a photo upload. The website requests an email address under the pretense of sending the results, but no such results actually arrive. The real purpose is to link users’ photos to email addresses and collect information for future database sales.
By the time users click the big pink button to have the AI transform them into Barbie or Ken, they have unknowingly provided their photo, email, appearance information, and accepted terms and conditions that are concerning. These terms grant the app the right to use users’ photos and data as they please without compensation and absolve them of responsibility in case of any malicious downloads.
Furthermore, the app invites users to pay $1.99 to download their Barbie version without a watermark, but it’s generally not worth it. All these practices make it crucial for us to carefully consider the applications we use in our online activities, as some may be abusive and dangerous, clouded by the momentary excitement they create.