Meta to Pay $1.4B in Texas Lawsuit Settlement Deal

Tech giant, Meta, is set to pay a whooping $1.4 billion settlement in the Texas facial recognition data lawsuit. CNBC reported the Meta data lawsuit was as a result of unauthorized use of biometric data by Facebook.

Filed in Texas State District Court, Harrison County in February 2022, Meta was accused of capturing and using biometric data from millions of Texas residents without complying with consent requirements.

The data included videos and photos uploaded on Facebook by users.

Historic Settlement

According to the Texas Attorney General office, the legal settlement with Meta demonstrates the State’s commitment to hold big tech accountable. The Meta data lawsuit settlement is the largest to be obtained following action by a single State. In the settlement, Meta will pay Texas a total of $1.4 billion over the next five years.

“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 Texans’ privacy rights. Any abuse of Texans’ sensitive data will be met with the full force of the law,” Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton said.

Commenting on the facial recognition data lawsuit settlement deal, Meta said it was pleased to resolve the matter.

“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,” Meta’s spokesperson told CNBC.

New Facebook Feature

Facebook introduced a new feature dubbed ‘tag suggestions’ in 2011. According to the Attorney General’s office, the tech giant stored huge volumes of biometric identifiers without the consent of users after launching the feature.

“Unbeknownst to most Texans, for more than a decade Meta ran facial recognition software on virtually every face contained in the photographs uploaded to Facebook, capturing records of the facial geometry of the people depicted,” Paxton said.

The tech giant did this despite being aware of the Texas Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier Act. This Act bars entities from capturing biometric data of Texas residents without their prior information and consent.

Meta closed its face recognition system on Facebook in 2021. The company cited rising concerns over the use of this technology as the reason for its decision.

Other Cases

Although the Texas Attorney General’s office announced the settlement deal on 30th July, the deal was reached on the eve of the scheduled June trial, which was about two months ago. In 2021, Facebook was ordered to make a $650 million settlement over similar allegations in Illinois.

“This is by far the biggest state governmental privacy settlement in history,” Jay Edelson, Chicago-based Class Action Attorney said. Edelson’s firm had filed the lawsuit that led to the $650 million settlement with Meta.

The Meta facial recognition lawsuit isn’t the only case that the Texas Attorney General’s office has been pursuing. The office is currently pursuing a lawsuit against Google’s parent company, Alphabet.

In this lawsuit, Texas State has accused Alphabet of collecting biometric data from millions of Texas residents.