The use of facial recognition technology has become commonplace, with many people using it on a daily basis to unlock their phones or sort their photos.

A recent Facebook post, though, claims a popular photo messaging app uses the technology to collect data for federal law enforcement. 

“Snapchat filters are a facial recognition database created by the FBI,” reads text included in the Oct. 3 post, which has been shared over 100 times in two days. “You don’t believe me? Google: Patent US9396354.”

But the claim is false.

Snapchat’s augmented reality filters, known as lenses, allow users to digitally alter their appearance in selfies by adding, among other things, dog ears, sunglasses and mustaches. 

The app does not collect any data that can be used to identify a specific person, a spokesperson for Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, told USA TODAY in an emailed statement.

The limited data used to power lenses isn't sent to the company's servers and never leaves the user's mobile device, the spokesperson said.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment.

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While the technology used to create Snapchat lenses can identify an eye or a nose as being part of a face, it can't identify that an eye or a nose belongs to a specific person, the company's spokesperson said. 

"Our camera uses technology to locate certain features – like where your hands, eyes and nose are – and uses that information to place the lenses," the company's website says.

The FBI declined to comment on the claim.

The technology used by the app doesn't require any private data to be collected, Derek Riley, a computer science professor at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, told USA TODAY.

Riley described the patent mentioned in the post as a "big red flag" that the claim was wrong, since it's actually for a privacy-protecting technology. He said there isn't any indication Snapchat is using the technology in the patent.

The patent appears to be for a technology that applies an algorithm to an image to alter it in a way that protects the privacy of select individuals in the image, Riley said.

"For example, if a celebrity was on a privacy blocking list, this could be used to obscure his or her face in images taken without permission prior to that image being shared on social media," he said. 

The use of facial recognition technology by police has become more common as agencies across the country have used it to find missing people, solve crimes and monitor large crowds, according to a Pew Research Center report.

There isn't any comprehensive data about exactly how many law enforcement agencies use the technology, the report says, but the Government Accountability Office said last year that at least 42 federal agencies that employ law enforcement officers have used it.

The Associated Press also debunked the claim.

Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that Snapchat filters are a facial recognition database created by the FBI. The app does not collect any data that can be used to identify a specific person. The data used to create lenses never leaves the user's mobile device.

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Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.