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Meta, previously known as Facebook, has reached a settlement with the state of Texas over allegations that it collected biometric data without users’ consent.
What’s the deal: Meta faced accusations of breaching Texas biometric privacy laws by utilizing facial-recognition technology to gather biometric data from millions of users without their permission. The controversy centered around the “Tag Suggestions” feature, which identified friends in photos and proposed tags. The lawsuit, initiated in 2022, alleged that this feature collected biometric information on “billions of occasions” without adequate user consent.
What Meta is agreeing to: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced that Meta will pay $1.4 billion to settle the lawsuit against them. The company must make an initial payment of $500 million within the next 30 days, with further payments bringing the total to $1.4 billion. As part of the settlement, Meta is also required to halt its unauthorized collection of biometric data, including facial geometry records, and is banned from using facial-recognition technology in Texas without proper consent moving forward. Additionally, Meta must erase any improperly obtained biometric information within a specified period and adopt new measures to comply with Texas’ biometric privacy regulations.
What Texas is saying: Following the announcement of the settlement, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said the settlement “serves as a warning to any companies engaged in practices that violate Texans’ privacy rights.” He added, “This historic settlement demonstrates our commitment to standing up to the world’s biggest technology companies and holding them accountable for breaking the law and violating Texan’s privacy rights. Any abuse of Texan’s sensitive data will be met with the full force of the law.”
What Meta is saying: In a brief statement, a spokesman for Meta said, “We are pleased to resolve this matter, and look forward to exploring future opportunities to deepen our business investments in Texas, including potentially developing data centers.”
