Illinois' biometric privacy law requires companies to obtain written permission before collecting a person’s biometrics. Residents have the right to sue for up to $5,000 per violation.
Facebook’s Tag Suggestions harvested facial data without getting written consent nor telling Illinois users for how long the data would be kept.
In perspective, $550m is 2.6% of quarterly revenue ($21b) and 7.5% of quarterly profits.
Amazon and Clearview AI are lending face-matching expertise to law enforcement agencies. The Secretive Company That Might End Privacy as We Know It (nytimes.com) .
Tech companies have argued that violations of consumer privacy law must prove concrete harms like financial losses. But Illinois Supreme Court ruled that violating a person’s biometric privacy could constitute a harm in and of itself. Illinois Supreme Court rules against Six Flags in lawsuit over fingerprint scans. Here’s why Facebook and Google care. (chicagotribune.com)
FB rolled out Tag Suggestions in 2010 as an opt out feature. In 2012, FB deactivated Tag Suggestions in Europe after concerns about its consent system.
Check back in 3 months to see if Amazon and Clearview changed tactics.