Facebook users in Illinois may qualify for a $400 settlement check after the social media company used facial-recognition technology
- Illinois Facebook users may be eligible for up to $400 after a settlement was reached involving the website's facial-tagging feature.
- Facebook originally tried to settle for $550 million, but a judge bumped the number up to $650 million.
- In order to qualify, users must have lived in Illinois for six months and have a profile before 2017.
Some Facebook users in Illinois are eligible for up to $400 after a settlement was reached involving Facebook's tagging feature, according to the Chicago Sun Times.
In July, Reuters reported that Facebook agreed to pay $650 million after a lawsuit was filed alleging the company violated the state's Biometric Information Privacy Act. The law states "[no] private entity may collect, store, or use biometric identifiers or information without providing prior notice to and obtaining a written release or consent from the subject," according to Bloomberg Law.
This isn't the first time that Facebook has received pushback for its facial-recognition feature. In 2019, Facebook began requiring users to opt-in to use their facial-recognition tool, after the FTC fined the tech giant $5 billion for its role in the the Cambridge Analytica privacy breech, as previously reported by Business Insider.
Facebook originally tried to settle the Illinois lawsuit for $550 million, but the judge presiding over the case rejected that offer, saying "I am not willing to let those companies off the hook in this case." If the settlement had gone for $550 million, claimants would've only been eligible to receive $150 to $300, according to NPR.
In order to qualify for the settlement check, claimants must have lived in Illinois for six months and have a profile that "Facebook created and stored a face template after June 7, 2011," according to the Chicago Sun Times.
Most checks will be between $200 and $400, and the deadline to apply is November 23. You can file a claim here.