Wednesday, April 18, 2018 7:25:05 AM
by Lucas Nolan
17 Apr 2018
Facebook could reportedly face billions of dollars in fines over their facial recognition features due to an Illinois law relating to the collection of biometric data.
A federal judge has ruled that a class action lawsuit including millions of Facebook users can proceed with their claims that the social media firm violated an Illinois law relating to the collection and storage of biometric data without users consent, according to Bloomberg ( https://tinyurl.com/yd5ve35s ). Millions of social media users could potentially sue Facebook for violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act of 2008 (BIPA) which holds a fine of $1,000 to $5,000 each time a user’s photo is used without permission. This could result in Facebook paying out billions of dollars.
Facebook has regularly encouraged users to tag themselves, friends and family members in uploaded photos and has then stored this information, the social media company then uses a program called DeepFace to match this with other photos of the tagged person. Judge James Donato wrote in a court order:
A class action is clearly superior to individual proceedings here. While not trivial, BIPA’s statutory damages are not enough to incentivize individual plaintiffs given the high costs of pursuing discovery on Facebook’s software and code base and Facebook’s willingness to litigate the case…Facebook seems to believe that a class action is not superior because statutory damages could amount to billions of dollars.
Shawn Williams, the lawyer representing users worried about Facebook’s collection of their biometric data wrote:
As more people become aware of the scope of Facebook’s data collection and as consequences begin to attach to that data collection, whether economic or regulatory, Facebook will have to take a long look at its privacy practices and make changes consistent with user expectations and regulatory requirements.
Facebook has stated that they are reviewing the ruling saying, “We continue to believe the case has no merit and will defend ourselves vigorously.” Facebook argued that the lawsuit should be pursued by individuals and not as a class-action as “damages could amount to billions of dollars,” the company also argued that each user could be “aggrieved” differently and should be forced to prove that they were negatively affected by Facebook’s collection of the data. Judge Donato ruled that “substantial damages are not a reason to decline class certification.”
Judge Donato approved the class of users in the suit in June 2011. A court ruling from December reads:
Although many individuals may not have had enough tagged photos to generate a face template in Facebook’s database, in January 2011 (i.e., before Facebook implemented tag suggestions for all users) the average user was tagged in 53 photos, far more than the 10 needed to generate a face template.
Judge Donato has ruled that the Illinois privacy act is clear and that Facebook collected a “wealth of data on its users, including self-reported residency and IP addresses.” The case is In re Facebook Biometric Information Privacy Litigation, 15-cv-03747, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco.)
http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2018/04/17/facebook-could-face-billions-in-fines-over-facial-recognition-features/
New York Yankees and Duke Basketball
Recent META News
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/25/2024 10:07:26 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/24/2024 10:21:09 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/24/2024 08:03:22 PM
- Visa Faces Monopoly Lawsuit; Meta Introduces Celebrity Voices for Chatbot; Stellantis on the Hunt for New CEO • IH Market News • 09/24/2024 10:15:50 AM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/23/2024 10:34:29 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/23/2024 08:02:33 PM
- Apollo Eyes $5 Billion Investment in Intel; TSMC and Samsung Explore UAE Chip Projects, and More • IH Market News • 09/23/2024 10:32:25 AM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/20/2024 08:10:30 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/19/2024 10:42:29 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/19/2024 08:15:35 PM
- AIG names new CFO; Progyny Drops 24% After Losing Key 2025 Contract; Exicure Jumps 190% With Nasdaq Extension • IH Market News • 09/19/2024 10:26:48 AM
- Meta Strengthens Child Privacy on Instagram; Google Overturns $1.7 Billion Antitrust Fine; Snap Updates Spectacles • IH Market News • 09/18/2024 10:13:07 AM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/17/2024 10:10:22 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/17/2024 08:32:58 PM
- Microsoft Boosts Share Buyback, Raises Dividends by 10%, Intel Secures Chip Deal with Amazon • IH Market News • 09/17/2024 10:40:35 AM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/13/2024 08:33:35 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/12/2024 10:38:42 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/10/2024 10:17:06 PM
- Form 8-K - Current report • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/10/2024 08:53:12 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/10/2024 08:06:11 PM
- Form 144 - Report of proposed sale of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/06/2024 08:12:38 PM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/05/2024 10:04:21 PM
- Meta Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend • PR Newswire (US) • 09/05/2024 08:30:00 PM
- Qualcomm Develops Mixed Reality Glasses; Verizon to Boost Dividend, Eyes Acquisition; Samsonite Plans US Dual Listing • IH Market News • 09/05/2024 10:11:35 AM
- Form 4 - Statement of changes in beneficial ownership of securities • Edgar (US Regulatory) • 09/05/2024 12:10:19 AM
North Bay Resources Commences Operations at Bishop Gold Mill, Inyo County, California; Engages Sabean Group Management Consulting • NBRI • Sep 25, 2024 9:15 AM
CEO David B. Dorwart Anticipates a Bright Future at Good Gaming Inc. Through His Most Recent Shareholder Update • GMER • Sep 25, 2024 8:30 AM
Cannabix Technologies and Omega Laboratories Inc. Advance Marijuana Breathalyzer Technology - Dr. Bruce Goldberger to Present at Society of Forensic Toxicologists Conference • BLOZF • Sep 24, 2024 8:50 AM
Integrated Ventures, Inc Announces Strategic Partnership For GLP-1 (Semaglutide) Procurement Through MedWell USA, LLC. • INTV • Sep 24, 2024 8:45 AM
Avant Technologies Accelerates Creation of AI-Powered Platform to Revolutionize Patient Care • AVAI • Sep 24, 2024 8:00 AM
VHAI - Vocodia Partners with Leading Political Super PACs to Revolutionize Fundraising Efforts • VHAI • Sep 19, 2024 11:48 AM