Google hit with biometric class action

Google LLC has been hit with a class action alleging it collects biometric information in violation of an Illinois privacy law carrying guaranteed and hefty monetary penalties.

Google's cloud-based photo service failed to secure consumer consent required under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act when it used facial recognition technology to create millions of "face templates" that heighten the risk for identity theft, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court in San Francisco.

The 2008 state-specific law requires private companies that collect residents' biometric information, such as fingerprints, DNA and face geometry, to detail how they store and protect the data. It carries damages of $1000 for negligent violations and up to $5000 for intentional or reckless violations.

The lawsuit comes just days after Facebook Inc. settled identical claims for $550 million.

Google facial recognition technology automatically creates and stores templates of users' faces using pictures they take on their phones, according to the complaint. The proprietary technology does not take into consideration whether a particular face belongs to a Google Photos user.

The templates identify peoples' names, gender, age and location. Molander v. Google LLC, 20-CV-00918 (N.D. Cal.,filed Feb. 6, 2020).

Dozens of pictures taken by named plaintiff Brandon Moldander were analyzed to create his unique facial template after they were uploaded to his cloud-based Google Photos account, according plaintiffs' attorney Tina Wolfson of Adhoot & Wolfson PC in the complaint. He was never given the opportunity to opt out of the practice, according to the suit, which claims the proposed class may be millions of users.

Google did not respond to requests for comment.

On Thursday, the San Francisco federal judge overseeing Facebook's settlement of its violation of the Illinois state law told plaintiffs' attorneys to explain why class members should accept less than the guaranteed damages they're entitled to.

The case is different because plaintiffs don't have to argue any injury given the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act lays out statutory damages, according to U.S. District Judge James Donato.