Another Class Action Suit is Filed Under Illinois Biometrics Law

The latest major lawsuit under Illinois’ biometric privacy law could be taking shape.

The lawsuit has been filed by an employee of Scrub, Inc., a Chicago-based cleaning company, and revolves around the company’s use of a fingerprint-based punch clock. According to a report from Cook County Record, the plaintiff, Shavonne Norman, says that Scrub, Inc. did not obtain her written consent concerning the use of her biometric data – a violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act – and is seeking damages of $5,000 for each BIPA violation as well as monetary damages and other compensation.

Illinois is one of just a few states that have implemented privacy legislation specifically concerning biometric information, and major companies like Facebook and Google are alleged to have run afoul of it. Indeed, a federal judge recently cleared the way for class action proceedings against Facebook over its use of automated face-tagging technology as a result of a lawsuit filed in Illinois.

Norman’s suit is also class action, and may be the first high-profile case involving biometric time and attendance tracking systems, which have been on the rise around the world thanks to their ability to reliably match employees to their clocking in and out for work.

Source: Cook County Record

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May 11, 2018 – by Alex Perala