A privacy statute best known for forcing Meta to pay out hundreds of millions is now aimed at the face-scanning features built into Apple’s photo app. A federal judge has cleared the way for a class action over the People feature in Apple Photos, with potential damages of up to $32.5B.
The original complaint, filed in the spring of 2020 by about 10 users, centered on a simple claim: the People feature quietly built faceprints without the notice and consent Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act demands.
BIPA’s penalty structure starts at $1,000 per negligent violation and climbs to $5,000 for intentional or reckless ones. Certification was granted in June, and a bid by Apple to appeal that ruling right away was turned down, sending the case back to district court.
The proposed classes span roughly 6.5 million Illinois residents. One covers anyone whose device filed a photo into a People album since September 2016, another takes in iCloud users with tagged albums, and a third reaches people with 5,000 or more assets in iCloud Photo Library since March 2025.
Precedent favors the plaintiffs. Meta’s $650M payout over Facebook’s face-tagging, plus $68.5M for Instagram’s biometric data handling, both came from BIPA.
The certification order, surfaced by The Times, lands after four amended complaints and years of discovery. Proof of an actual BIPA violation is still required before any damages land. The certification removes the biggest procedural barrier, and the lawsuit now moves toward trial.
