PREVIEW

Meta to Pay $1.4 Billion to Settle Texas Lawsuit Over Facial Recognition Data. Meta Platforms agreed to a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas over allegations of illegally collecting biometric data without user consent, marking the largest state settlement of its kind, Reuters reports. The settlement, announced by Texas lawyers, is the largest ever by a single state under a biometric privacy law, which can impose damages of up to $25,000 per violation. Filed in 2022, the lawsuit was the first major enforcement action under Texas' 2009 biometric privacy law, targeting Meta's practices with Facebook's "Tag Suggestions" feature. The state accused Facebook of capturing biometric information billions of times from photos and videos, using a feature that suggested tags for users in uploaded media. While agreeing to the settlement, Meta denied any wrongdoing and expressed interest in future business investments in Texas, including the potential development of data centers. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton highlighted the settlement as a significant action against big tech companies, emphasizing the protection of Texans' privacy rights. Meta and Texas reached the settlement agreement in May, weeks before the trial was set to begin, avoiding further legal proceedings. In 2020, Meta settled a similar lawsuit in Illinois for $650 million, addressing allegations under one of the nation's strictest biometric privacy laws. Alphabet's Google faces a similar lawsuit in Texas, indicating ongoing legal scrutiny over the use of biometric data by major tech companies. The settlement with Meta underscores the growing importance of privacy laws and the legal risks for companies using biometric data without adequate safeguards and consent.
Instructions: THIS VIDEO MUST NOT BE EDITED FOR LENGTH TO COMBINE WITH OTHER CONTENT