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ARTICLE · 18 NOVEMBER 2020

Biometric Privacy Laws Create New Avenue For Data Breach Class Actions

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney
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As the United States continues to adjust to COVID-19, more businesses are utilizing biometric data to provide a safe environment for their customers and employees.

United StatesPrivacy
Ashley Bruce Trehan
Ashley Bruce Trehan
Kyle D. Black
Kyle D. Black
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As the United States continues to adjust to COVID-19, more businesses are utilizing biometric data to provide a safe environment for their customers and employees. But the unauthorized use of biometric data can lead to class action lawsuits from customers and employees. In one of the latest such efforts, a former employee sued Amazon in a proposed class action lawsuit claiming that the company's COVID-19 screening program violated Illinois's Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).1 Penalties for violating these laws can be huge. To help reduce this exposure to litigation, companies should be aware of what biometric privacy laws exist, what laws are on the horizon, and what steps they should be taking to maintain the lawful use and collection of biometric data. 

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