Source: WND
In a ruling that could ripple across the nation’s biometric industry and target Facebook’s use of face surveillance without users’ consent, the Illinois Supreme Court has concluded companies can be sued for collecting such data without informed consent.
“Users don’t need to prove an injury like identity fraud or physical harm – just losing control of one’s biometric privacy is injury enough,” concluded the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which participated in the case.
In Rosenbach v. Six Flags a mother sued on behalf of a 14-year-old son whose thumbprint was taken at the amusement park without informed consent in apparent violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.
The law says companies cannot gather, use or share biometric information without informed, opt-in consent.
EFF and several other organizations filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case urging protection for consumers’ privacy.
“The Illinois Supreme Court agreed with us and soundly rejected the defendants’ argument that BIPA required a person to show an injury beyond loss of statutory privacy rights. The court rejected the company’s argument that violation of a privacy statute is a mere ‘technical violation of the law.’ In fact, the court ruled, it inflicts a serious harm that supports a lawsuit,” EFF said.
“The court recognized that, through BIPA, the legislature had codified an individual’s ‘right to privacy in and control over their biometric identifiers and biometric information.’ The need to codify this right was supported by the legislature’s findings that biometrics may be used to access sensitive information, but unlike other identifiers like Social Security numbers, biometrics are unique to each individual and can’t be changed. As a result, the court ruled, quoting the legislature: ‘once compromised, the individual has no recourse, is at heightened risk…
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