Photobucket Sued Over Plans To Sell User Photos, Biometric Identifiers To AI Companies – Slashdot
Photobucket was sued Wednesday after a recent privacy policy update revealed plans to sell users’ photos — including biometric identifiers like face and iris scans — to companies training generative AI models. From a report: The proposed class action seeks to stop Photobucket from selling users’ data without first obtaining written consent, alleging that Photobucket either intentionally or negligently failed to comply with strict privacy laws in states like Illinois, New York, and California by claiming it can’t reliably determine users’ geolocation.
Two separate classes could be protected by the litigation. The first includes anyone who ever uploaded a photo between 2003 — when Photobucket was founded — and May 1, 2024. Another potentially even larger class includes any non-users depicted in photographs uploaded to Photobucket, whose biometric data has also allegedly been sold without consent.
Photobucket risks huge fines if a jury agrees with Photobucket users that the photo-storing site unjustly enriched itself by breaching its user contracts and illegally seizing biometric data without consent. As many as 100 million users could be awarded untold punitive damages, as well as up to $5,000 per “willful or reckless violation” of various statutes.
