Facebook is facing yet another lawsuit that alleges it of illegally collecting biometric data of users. The new lawsuit accuses the social media giant of collecting biometric data of more than 100 million Instagram users without their consent.
The lawsuit was filed in state court in Redwood City, California on Monday. Kelly Whalen, an Illinois resident, alleges in her complaint that Instagram has been collecting biometric data of its users without their knowledge. According to the lawsuit, Facebook did not notify Instagram users that it was collecting their biometric data until the beginning of this year. Kelly has been using the Facebook-owned photo-sharing app since 2011.
This practice violates the Illinois state privacy law. Companies need to obtain written consent before collecting biometric data from users in the state. Under the law, a company may be liable to pay at least $1,000 per violation. The amount can go up to $5,000 if the court determines it to be an intentional violation of the law.
Instagram, however, has rubbished the claims. “This suit is baseless,” Stephanie Otway, a Facebook spokesperson, said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg. “Instagram doesn’t use face recognition technology.”
Instagram’s data policy on face recognition states: “If we introduce face-recognition technology to your Instagram experience, we will let you know first, and you will have control over whether we use this technology for you. The face-recognition templates we create may constitute data with special protections under the laws of your country.”
Facebook sued again over illegal harvesting of biometrics data
This is not the first lawsuit that alleges Facebook of illegal collection of biometrics data of its users. The company recently reached a settlement over a very similar lawsuit in Illinois that centered on its use of facial recognition tech to identify people in photos uploaded on Facebook.
The Menlo Park, California-based company offered to pay $550 million, later increased to $650 million, to settle the lawsuit. It is the largest-ever payout for a class-action lawsuit alleging online privacy violations. However, that may not be enough. A judge at the US District Court of California has reportedly argued that payout is inadequate. Facebook’s legal team will now return to court next week to attempt and settle the lawsuit.
Facebook is also facing a similar investigation in Texas. State Attorney General Ken Paxton is investigating if the company has violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices — Consumer Protection Act (DTPA) by illegally collecting biometric data from its users. The law protects Texas citizens from false and misleading business practices, unconscionable actions, and breaches of warranty.