Meta Platforms, the tech giant behind Facebook, has reached a monumental settlement of $1.4 billion with the state of Texas. The lawsuit accused Meta of unlawfully harvesting biometric data through its facial-recognition technology without user consent. This settlement, the largest of its kind for a single state, marks a significant moment in the enforcement of Texas’ biometric privacy law, which was first enacted in 2009.
The controversy centered around Meta’s “Tag Suggestions” feature, which automatically identified individuals in photos and videos uploaded by users. Texas claimed that this feature led to the collection of biometric information billions of times, violating privacy rights on a massive scale.
While Meta has agreed to the settlement, the company continues to deny any wrongdoing. A spokesperson expressed the company’s satisfaction with resolving the issue and hinted at potential future business developments in Texas, such as new data centers.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton emphasized the state’s dedication to holding tech giants accountable for privacy violations. This case follows Meta’s previous $650 million settlement in Illinois over similar biometric privacy concerns.
In a related note, Google, another tech behemoth, is currently facing its own biometric privacy lawsuit in Texas. The outcome of these cases underscores the growing scrutiny on tech companies’ handling of sensitive personal data.
