Instagram — Lawsuit
Executive Summary
A federal judge granted preliminary approval for a $68.5 million class-action settlement specifically for Instagram's use of facial recognition on Illinois users, separate from the earlier $650M Facebook BIPA settlement. Approximately 4 million Illinois residents who used Instagram's face-scanning features were eligible for payouts under the state's Biometric Information Privacy Act.
What Happened
On July 18, 2023, a federal judge granted preliminary approval for a $68.5 million class-action settlement against Instagram for its use of facial recognition technology on Illinois users. This settlement is separate from an earlier $650 million settlement involving Facebook and addresses violations of Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act related to Instagram's face-scanning features.
Who Is Affected
Approximately 4 million Illinois residents who used Instagram's face-scanning features are eligible for compensation under this settlement. The affected users are specifically those whose biometric data was collected through Instagram's facial recognition technology while they were residents of Illinois.
Why It Matters
This settlement demonstrates that individual social media platforms within the same parent company can be held separately accountable for biometric privacy violations under state law. The case reinforces Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act as a significant enforcement mechanism for protecting users' facial recognition data and establishes that companies cannot escape liability even after related settlements.
What You Should Do
If you are an Illinois resident who used Instagram's face-scanning features, you should monitor official settlement communications to learn about claim submission deadlines and requirements. Information not available from current sources.
AI-Assisted
Event summaries are generated by Claude AI from verified sources and reviewed by humans before publication.
Sources