Social media giant Meta has agreed to a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas after attorneys for the state accused the company of obtaining and using users鈥� biometric data without permission.
Texas , formerly known as Facebook, in early 2022 for violating the state鈥檚 鈥淐apture or Use of Biometric Identifier鈥� Act (鈥淐UBI鈥�) and the Deceptive Trade Practices Act, Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement Tuesday.
鈥淭his historic settlement demonstrates our commitment to standing up to the world鈥檚 biggest technology companies and holding them accountable for breaking the law and violating Texans鈥� privacy rights,鈥� Paxton added. 鈥淎ny abuse of Texans鈥� sensitive data will be met with the full force of the law.鈥�
The lawsuit stemmed from Facebook鈥檚 鈥渢ag suggestions鈥� feature that was unveiled in 2011. Paxton said the feature was automatically engaged for millions of Texans who didn鈥檛 know how the company would use their information.
鈥淯nbeknownst to most Texans, for more than a decade Meta ran facial recognition software on virtually every face contained in the photographs uploaded to Facebook, capturing records of the facial geometry of the people depicted,鈥� Paxton said.
The settlement amount is the largest that resulted in a lawsuit from a single state, the attorney general鈥檚 office said.
In a , a Meta spokesperson said that the company was 鈥減leased to resolve the matter.鈥�
鈥榌We] look forward to exploring future opportunities to deepen our business investments in Texas, including potentially developing data centers,鈥� the spokesperson said.
McKool Smith, who with Keller Postman served as co-counsel in the lawsuit, said the case was scheduled to go to trial in June but all sides agreed to a settlement just before then and asked the court to halt the proceedings while terms of the settlement were finalized.
鈥淐ompanies that operate in Texas must be held accountable for their actions, particularly when it puts the privacy of Texans at risk,鈥� .
Texas鈥� Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier law was passed in 2009 and states a 鈥減erson may not capture a biometric identifier鈥� without a user鈥檚 consent. The law also forbids the sale of biometric data without consent or unless allowed by law and requires companies to use reasonable care in storing such data, according to an analysis of state privacy laws by the .