Facebook Face-Scanning Privacy Class Case Cleared for Trial (1)

Aug. 8, 2019, 3:14 PM UTCUpdated: Aug. 8, 2019, 3:32 PM UTC

Facebook Inc. failed to undo a ruling that allows millions of its users to band together in a lawsuit accusing the social network of gathering and storing biometric data without consent, potentially exposing the company to billions of dollars in damages.

A federal appeals court in San Francisco on Aug. 8 rejected the company’s request to block the privacy suit from proceeding as a class action on behalf of Illinois Facebook users going back to 2011 whose photos were tagged and collected in a company-controlled database.

The decision exposes the company to potentially huge penalties under the Illinois Biometric Information ...

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