The suit alleges Clearview AI’s database of images violates the privacy rights of people in California broadly and that the company’s “mass surveillance technology disproportionately harms immigrants and communities of color.” The lawsuit was filed by Mijente, NorCal Resist, and four individuals who identify as political activists. The complaint, which was filed Tuesday in California Superior Court in Alameda County, alleges Clearview AI’s software is still used by state and federal law enforcement to identify individuals even though several California cities have banned government use of facial recognition technology. Clearview CEO Hoan Ton-That stated that the company plans to comply with BIPA by selling its algorithm - and not access to its database - to private companies in the U.S.Clearview AI, the controversial firm behind facial-recognition software used by law enforcement, is being sued in California by two immigrants’ rights groups to stop the company’s surveillance technology from proliferating in the state. In a statement, Clearview’s legal team spun the settlement as a “huge win” for the company, claiming that its business will not be impacted and that Clearview is happy to end its legal battle with the ACLU. Clearview has also run afoul of privacy laws in Canada, France and Australia, with some countries ordering the company to delete all data that was obtained without their residents’ consent. Last November, Britain’s Information Commissioner’s Office hit Clearview with a $22.6 million fine for failing to obtain consent from British residents before sweeping their photos into its massive database. The sweeping restrictions may dampen Clearview’s ability to sell access to its software in the U.S, but the company is also facing privacy headwinds in its business abroad. The company must also end its controversial practice of providing free trials to police officers if those individuals don’t get approval through their departments to test the software. the company can’t provide its software to any government contractors or state or local government entities in Illinois for five years.Ĭlearview will also be forced to maintain an opt-out system to allow any Illinois residents to block their likeness from the company’s facial search results, a mechanism it must spend $50,000 to publicize online. While there is an exception made for government contractors - Clearview works with government agencies, including Homeland Security and the FBI in the U.S. Last year, Facebook was ordered to pay $650 million for violating BIPA by automatically tagging people in photos with the use of facial recognition tech.Īccording to the terms of the Clearview settlement, which is still in the process of being finalized by the court, the company will be nationally banned from selling or giving away access to its facial recognition database to private companies and individuals. Other companies would be wise to take note, and other states should follow Illinois’ lead in enacting strong biometric privacy laws.”Ĭlearview isn’t the only company to get tangled up in the trailblazing Illinois privacy law. “Clearview can no longer treat people’s unique biometric identifiers as an unrestricted source of profit. “By requiring Clearview to comply with Illinois’ pathbreaking biometric privacy law not just in the state, but across the country, this settlement demonstrates that strong privacy laws can provide real protections against abuse,” Deputy Director of ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project Nathan Freed Wessler said. That law, the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), protects the privacy of Illinois residents, but the Clearview settlement is a clear blueprint for how the law can be leveraged to bolster consumer protections on the national stage. On Monday, Clearview AI agreed to settle a 2020 lawsuit from the ACLU that accused the company of running afoul of an Illinois law banning the use of individuals’ biometric data without consent. A company that gained notoriety for selling access to billions of facial photos, many culled from social media without the knowledge of the individuals depicted, faces major new restrictions to its controversial business model.
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