On April 1, 2015, Facebook received a class action complaint and demand for jury trial for having allegedly violated users’ privacy by collecting and using their biometric data. According to the complaint, through its “tag suggestions” program, Facebook scans all pictures uploaded by users and identifies any Facebook friends they may want to tag. Plaintiff claims that Facebook does not disclose its wholesale biometrics data collection practices in its privacy policies, nor asks users to acknowledge them. According to the suit, “Facebook secretly amassed the world’s largest privately held database of consumers biometrics data”. Additionally, Facebook would violate Illinois 2008 Biometric Information Privacy Act, which requires companies to obtain written releases from people before collecting “face geometry” and other biometric data.
The Federal Trade commission suggested that companies using facial recognition technology should obtain users’ affirmative “consent to the collection of biometric data before scanning and extracting biometric data from digital photographs”. But this, the complaint states, “is precisely what Facebook did not do when it rolled out its facial recognition program.” Due to lack of informed consent, users can opt out only after they have been unwittingly opted in.
Plaintiff seeks class certification, statutory damages, and an injunction requiring Facebook to comply with Illinois law on collection, use and storage of biometric data.
Licata v. Facebook, Case No. 2015CH05427 in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, is available at https://s3.amazonaws…
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