Texas and Meta agreed on a $1.4 billion settlement after the state sued the company, formerly known as Facebook, to stop its practice of capturing users' biometric data, the attorney general's office announced Tuesday.
The lawsuit was brought and settled under Texas' Capture of Use of Biometric Identifier Act, which is meant to serve as a deterrent to companies who might violate Texans' privacy rights, the attorney general's office said.
Paxton sued Meta in February 2022, accusing it of capturing data without consent.
"After vigorously pursuing justice for our citizens whose privacy rights were violated by Meta’s use of facial recognition software, I’m proud to announce that we have reached the largest settlement ever obtained from an action brought by a single State," Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a written statement. "This historic settlement demonstrates our commitment to standing up to the world’s biggest technology companies and holding them accountable for breaking the law and violating Texans’ privacy rights. Any abuse of Texans’ sensitive data will be met with the full force of the law."
Meta will pay Texas the $1.4 billion over five years. The sum is the largest ever obtained by a single state and the largest privacy settlement an attorney general has obtained, surpassing a $390 million settlement paid by Google to 40 states in 2022.
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