Facebook has agreed to pay $725 million to settle a class action lawsuit over its use of facial recognition technology in Illinois. The settlement means that millions of Facebook users in Illinois could be eligible for a payout from the company.
The Lawsuit
The lawsuit alleged that Facebook broke Illinois’ biometric privacy law by using facial recognition technology to collect biometric data from users’ photos without their consent. The Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) requires companies to obtain permission before using technologies like facial recognition.
The case began in 2015 when Illinois Facebook users accused the social media giant of violating BIPA with its “Tag Suggestions” feature, which uses facial recognition to match faces in photos to user profiles. The lawsuit claimed Facebook collected biometric data without users’ consent, stored it, and failed to provide details on how long the data was stored.
Settlement Details
Under the preliminary settlement, Facebook will pay $650 million to eligible Illinois users as compensation. The company will also pay $100 million in legal fees and expenses. Illinois’ BIPA law provides for damages of $1,000 for negligent violations and $5,000 for intentional or reckless violations. The settlement equates to about $400 per eligible user.
To be eligible for a payout, you must have appeared in a photo posted on Facebook from June 7, 2011 through September 20, 2022 while living in Illinois. Minor children represented by guardians will also be eligible.
Who is Eligible
Millions of Facebook users in Illinois may qualify for a payout from the settlement. To be eligible, you must:
- Have lived in the state of Illinois for at least 183 days (six months) between June 7, 2011 to September 20, 2022.
- Have appeared in at least one photo posted on Facebook between those dates that was tagged or suggested to be tagged.
Users who meet both requirements can submit claims, even if you no longer live in Illinois or no longer have a Facebook account. Minors qualify if their pictures appeared on Facebook and a guardian submits a claim on their behalf.
How Much Will I Get?
How much each person receives depends on how many people submit valid claims. With millions of Facebook users in Illinois, each person is likely to receive a few hundred dollars. However, claims could be higher or lower depending on the total number of claims.
Here is a table estimating potential payouts based on the number of claimants:
| Number of Claimants | Potential Payout Per Person |
|---|---|
| 1 million | $725 |
| 2 million | $362 |
| 3 million | $241 |
| 4 million | $181 |
As the table shows, potential payouts range from around $725 if there are 1 million claimants down to $181 if there are 4 million claimants. Most estimates expect millions of Facebook users to be eligible, so real payouts are likely to be at the lower end of that range.
How to File a Claim
Eligible Illinois Facebook users will need to submit claims in order to receive compensation. The process for submitting claims has not been finalized yet, since the settlement still requires court approval.
However, claimants will likely need to provide the following information:
- Name and contact information
- Status as an Illinois resident during the relevant period (June 2011 – September 2022)
- Dates when you appeared in photos posted on Facebook while living in Illinois
Users’ personal Facebook data will be used to confirm eligibility. Claimants may also need to provide documents like an Illinois driver’s license or utility bills as proof of residency.
The claims process will be handled by a third-party claims administrator. Claim forms will not be available until the settlement receives final approval after a hearing on January 31, 2023. Keep an eye out for updates on the settlement website and from the claims administrator.
Case Timeline
Here is a timeline of key events in the Facebook biometric privacy class action case:
- May 2015 – Lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
- April 2018 – Class certification granted.
- January 2020 – First trial date postponed.
- August 2022 – Parties reach preliminary $650 million settlement.
- September 2022 – Settlement agreement filed with court.
- January 31, 2023 – Final approval hearing scheduled.
The court will hold a final approval hearing on January 31, 2023. If the settlement receives approval, eligible users will then have a claims period likely lasting about 2 months to submit claims. Payments could go out by mid-2023 if there are no appeals.
What Happens Next
Now that a preliminary settlement has been reached, here is what happens next:
- Settlement documents will be filed with the court outlining the details.
- Notice will go out to class members informing them of the settlement.
- The court will hold a final approval hearing on January 31, 2023.
- If approved, eligible users will have a limited time to file claims.
- A claims administrator will review claims and determine payouts for each user.
- Checks or electronic payments will be issued to approved claimants.
The court still needs to give final approval of the settlement at the January 2023 hearing. Class members will receive direct notice of the settlement and can opt-out or object. If approved, users will have about two months to submit claims before payments are sent out.
Key Takeaways
Here are some key points about the Facebook photo tagging settlement:
- Millions of Facebook users in Illinois are eligible for potential payouts.
- You must have lived in Illinois for 6+ months during the class period and be tagged or suggested to be tagged in a Facebook photo.
- Individual payments expected to be a few hundred dollars per claimant.
- Claims process will start after court final approval hearing on January 31, 2023.
- Eligible users will need to submit valid claims to receive compensation.
Why Facebook Settled
Facebook decided to settle the class action lawsuit for $650 million to avoid an even larger damages payout if the case proceeded to trial. Under Illinois’ BIPA law, collectives statutory damages could have potentially exceeded $5 billion if all impacted users participated in the lawsuit.
Settling allows Facebook to cap its financial liability. It also avoids a trial that could have revealed more embarrassing details about the company’s privacy practices. However, the settlement is still one of the largest payouts under BIPA and serves as a warning to other companies using biometric data without consent.
Facebook’s Use of Facial Recognition
Facebook rolled out its Tag Suggestions feature in 2010, which used facial recognition technology to match faces in newly uploaded photos to existing user profiles. When a match was found, Facebook would suggest tagging that user in the photo but did not automatically tag until users confirmed it.
The Tag Suggestions feature helped Facebook automatically identify users in the hundreds of millions of photos uploaded to the platform every day. This provided a better user experience by making it easier to tag friends. However, Facebook failed to obtain users’ consent before enabling the tool by default.
Facebook took some steps to address privacy concerns, such as introducing an opt-out setting in 2017. But the company continued using facial recognition data collected previously without consent. The Illinois lawsuit targeted that collection of biometric data without users’ permission.
Importance of the Settlement
The $650 million settlement marks one of the biggest payouts under biometric privacy laws in the U.S. Facial recognition technology is increasingly used by retailers, social platforms, law enforcement, and other companies often without consent requirements.
This settlement sends an important message that despite being highly profitable, companies cannot simply exploit biometric data and facial recognition technology without consequences. It emphasizes the importance of biometric consent laws like Illinois’ BIPA.
Consumer privacy and technology advocates hope this landmark settlement establishes firm legal precedent that will force companies to properly disclose when collecting sensitive biometric data and not implement technologies like facial recognition by default without consent.
Criticism of Facebook
Facebook faced heavy criticism from privacy advocates and regulators over its facial recognition practices revealed by the lawsuit, including:
- Collecting biometric data from user photos without proper notice or consent.
- Enabling facial recognition by default on all users rather than making it opt-in.
- Failing to provide retention limits and guidelines for biometric data collected.
- Storing massive databases of biometric facial data that could be vulnerable to hackers.
- Misleading users regarding how facial recognition data would be used.
Consumer groups accused Facebook of prioritizing growth and profits over adequately informing users how their biometric data would be collected and leveraged by the company’s products and services.
Other Lawsuits & Investigations
The settlement with Illinois users resolves one of several legal issues still haunting Facebook over its facial recognition practices:
- A similar class action lawsuit under BIPA is continuing in California.
- Facebook agreed in 2022 to pay $90 million to settle a California privacy lawsuit over the same issue.
- The FTC fined Facebook $5 billion in 2019 for privacy violations including around facial recognition.
- Facebook disabled its facial recognition system in 2021 and deleted over 1 billion facial recognition templates.
The company still faces ongoing legal and regulatory challenges around its privacy practices beyond just facial recognition concerns.
Facebook’s Response
When initially sued in 2015, Facebook called the Illinois lawsuit “without merit” and vowed to fight it vigorously. The company’s public response has gradually shifted over the years as facial recognition concerns grew.
Regarding the settlement, a Facebook spokesperson provided this statement:
“We decided to pursue a settlement as it was in the best interest of our community and our shareholders to move past this matter.”
Privately, settlement discussions were likely motivated by a desire to contain their significant legal and financial exposure under BIPA’s statutory damages provisions if the case proceeded further.
What This Means For Facebook Users
For most Facebook users, the biggest impact is the potential to receive several hundred dollars in compensation through the settlement. Beyond that, here are some key implications:
- Your Facebook profile photos were likely scanned by facial recognition software without your consent.
- Data from that facial recognition matching was stored by Facebook indefinitely.
- New facial recognition photo tagging has been removed, but Facebook may still be using some facial data.
- Facebook’s facial recognition got you nothing while violating your privacy rights.
- More awareness and caution is needed regarding how companies like Facebook use your biometric data.
Users should be more careful and selective regarding what photos they upload to Facebook and social platforms. Scrutinize privacy policies and opt-out of facial analysis features when possible.
Conclusion
Facebook’s $650 million settlement for violating Illinois’ biometric privacy law with facial recognition tagging highlights the importance of companies obtaining consent before collecting sensitive user data like biometric information.
The massive payout also emphasizes how much companies like Facebook have at stake if they fail to comply with tighter privacy laws and face class action lawsuits as a result of their practices. While the settlement only applies in Illinois, it sends a broader message to tech companies to be more transparent in leveraging biometric technology and facial recognition capabilities.
For now, eligible Illinois Facebook users have the opportunity to receive several hundred dollars in compensation. But greater awareness of companies’ biometric practices and more assertiveness in protecting biometric consent is needed from all social media users, beyond just financial remedies.