Meta Agrees to Pay $1.4 Billion in Landmark Privacy Settlement with Texas Over Biometric Data Use

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has agreed to pay $1.4 billion to settle a lawsuit with the state of Texas over unauthorized use of biometric data. This settlement, to be paid over five years, is the largest ever obtained by a single state in a privacy lawsuit against a tech company.The lawsuit, filed in 2022, alleged that Meta violated Texas law by collecting and storing biometric data of millions of users without their consent through Facebook’s ‘tag suggestion’ feature. This feature, introduced in 2011, used facial recognition technology to scan faces in uploaded photos without explicit user permission.Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton hailed the settlement as ‘historic,’ stating, ‘This demonstrates our commitment to holding the world’s largest technology companies accountable for breaking the law and violating Texans’ privacy rights’. The lawsuit was filed under the Texas Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier Act (CUBI) and the Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA).In response to growing privacy concerns, Meta had already announced in 2021 the shutdown of its facial recognition system and the deletion of faceprints of over 1 billion people. The company has admitted no wrongdoing in this settlement and stated, ‘We are pleased to resolve this matter, and look forward to exploring future opportunities to deepen our business investments in Texas’.This case serves as a warning to other tech companies about the importance of user privacy and consent in data collection practices. It follows a trend of increasing scrutiny on tech giants, with Meta previously settling a similar case in Illinois for $650 million in 2020.

Key points

• Meta agrees to pay $1.

4 billion to Texas over unauthorized use of biometric data.

• The settlement is the largest ever obtained by a single state in a privacy lawsuit against a tech company.
• Meta has discontinued its facial recognition system and agreed to delete faceprints of over 1 billion people.
• The case highlights growing concerns over tech companies’ use of biometric data and user privacy.

Contradictions👾While most sources report the settlement as a negative outcome for Meta, one source presents a neutral sentiment, focusing on Meta’s future investments in Texas.