L’Oréal Accused of Violating Privacy With Makeup ‘Try-On’ Tech

L’Oréal USA Inc. has been hit with a lawsuit by an Illinois customer who said the company’s online “try-on” feature for makeup unlawfully collected and stored her biometric information.

Many if not all of the companies in L’Oréal’s family of brands offer the technology, which enables customers to virtually try on products by taking photos of their faces, according to a June 26 proposed class action filed in the US District Court for the Central District of California.

L’Oréal joins a growing list of retailers, including Christian Dior, Estée Lauder, Louis Vuitton, and Ulta, that have been accused of violating Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act. The state law is the only one in the nation that allows consumers to bring biometric privacy lawsuits against companies.

As try-on features have expanded, companies now grapple with whether or not their applications violate privacy safeguards.

The new complaint argues L’Oreal USA, the California-based branch of French cosmetics company L’Oreal S.A., stored thousands of facial geometries from Illinois residents and has profited from biometric information.

Chicago resident Krista Cabiltes, on behalf of the proposed class, alleged that the company didn’t inform customers it was collecting or storing their biometric information. Rather, it simply instructed them to upload their photos.

Illinois law requires both notice and consent from individuals before their data is collected, and blocks companies from selling it.

Additionally, Cabiltes said L’Oréal lacked a written, publicly-available policy establishing guidelines for biometric information destruction when the initial purpose for its collection had been satisfied, or within three years of the individual’s last interaction.

Because the purpose of the facial scan was to show what people might look like if they purchase and apply a product, the lawsuit argued, the company failed to permanently destroy the information at the conclusion of each “try on.”

Cabiltes is represented by Beligan Law Group LLP, Fradin Law, and Simon Law Co.

L’Oréal Groupe didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The case is Cabiltes v. Loreal USA, Inc, C.D. Cal., No. 2:23-cv-05080, 6/26/23.