(San Francisco) Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, agreed Tuesday to pay $1.4 billion for violating a Texas state privacy law that prevents people from “showing” friends in photos posted on Facebook.
The southern US state accused Meta of circumventing laws that prohibit the use of people’s biometric data by allowing users to automatically name people in their photos without prior consent, according to court documents seen by AFP.
The agreement signed between Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and the digital giant will end a multi-year legal process.
PHOTO TONY GUTIERREZ, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General
“I am proud to announce that we have reached the largest settlement ever reached by a state” after a lawsuit against a major company, said Mr. Paxton, who called the agreement “historic.”
The complaint, filed in early 2022, was the first in which the state accused a digital company of failing to comply with the law on the registration and use of biometric identification.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement and are ready to strengthen our investments in Texas, particularly through the development of data centers,” reacted a spokesperson for Meta questioned by AFP.
The company emphasizes that the agreement includes the non-recognition of any fault.
The automatic identification function in photos was integrated in 2011 by Facebook. It includes a facial recognition system, without the consent of the users of the platform, which allows a person to be automatically offered the name of the protagonists of the photo, and the possibility of adding them.