Summary of Article:
- Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has been hit with a lawsuit for allegedly violating Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).
- The suit claims the exchange collected customers’ fingerprint and facial recognition data without informing them.
- Plaintiff Michael Massel is seeking relief in the form of $5,000 in damages for each violation of BIPA.
Background
A newly filed lawsuit alleges that crypto exchange Coinbase improperly collected, stored, and distributed customers’ biometric data. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has been slapped with a lawsuit filed with a District Court in California on May 1 for violating Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). The suit alleges the exchange collected and improperly used its customers’ fingerprint and facial recognition data. Bloomberg reports plaintiff Michael Massel is seeking relief in the form of $5,000 in damages for each “intentional and reckless violation” of BIPA and an additional $1,000 for every violation Massel’s legal representation can find.
BIPA Regulations
According to Decrypt, the lawsuit accuses Coinbase of collecting biometric information through its KYC procedures and that this data was illegally obtained, used, stored, and disseminated. BIPA regulations require a company seeking to collect biometric data to inform a person in writing that it obtains such data and must specify the purpose and duration of the data’s storage. BIPA further requires written consent from a customer, and the company seeking to obtain such data must publish “publicly‐available written retention schedules and guidelines for permanently destroying biometric identifiers and biometric information.”
Lawsuit AllegationsConsequences
Michael Massel is seeking relief in the form of $5 000 in damages for each “intentional reckless violation” of BIPA plus an additional $1 000 for every violation his legal representation can find.