A California federal judge has approved a $ 650 million settlement in 2015 for a lawsuit against Facebook over the use of face marks.
U.S. District Judge James Donato called the settlement a “significant result” in a lawsuit Friday, saying “it will put at least $ 345 in the hands of every class member interested in compensation.”
“Overall, the settlement is a major victory for consumers in the much-contested area of digital privacy,” Donato wrote.
The case revolved around Facebook’s “tag suggestions” program, which identifies people’s faces on photos uploaded to the user-branded platform.
According to the background in the lawsuit, the plaintiffs alleged that the platform used and stored digital scans of their faces without prior notice or permission, in violation of Illinois privacy laws.
Attorney Jay Edelson, who originally filed the case in Illinois in April 2015, told The Chicago Tribune that the settlement was a “major problem.”
“It sends a pretty clear message that biometric privacy rights in Illinois are here to stay,” he said.
Edelson celebrates settlement Twitter, writes that it was ‘the largest settlement for cash privacy classes in history’.
Edelson’s firm had no additional comment on the settlement.
Facebook said in a statement to The Associated Press: “We are delighted that we have reached a settlement so that we can move beyond this matter, which is in the best interests of our community and our shareholders.”
The Hill reached out to Facebook for comment.
Facebook ended proposals for photo tagging in 2019 and instead opted for a model to enable users to determine what data the platform has across their face.