A federal judge in Chicago has rejected an attempt by Google to throw out a case linked to face recognition and scanned photographs.The Rivera vs. Google case has seen a claimant allege that the company's policies for handling the images violate the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).Google argued the lawsuit should be dismissed because the law only applies to digital scans of real faces. U.S. District Judge Edmond E. Chang, however, ruled against the tech giant in late February.”If this interpretation of the IBIPA is sustained through this case and by other courts, it would be significant in making it clear that the requirements of the statute apply to face scans from photos, not just face scans made in person,” said Steve Gold, an attorney at McGuire Woods in Chicago, reports the Cook County Record.Gold said the ruling isn't binding and only allows the lawsuit to proceed, though he said the judge's interpretation of the law was well-reasoned, which could encourage other courts to adopt it.The BIPA prohibits a private entity from obtaining an individual's biometric information, such as fingerprints, retina scans and facial geometry, unless it informs the person in writing and receives written consent. The entity must also have a written policy on storing and eventually destroying the data.

Also in the news:

Default ThumbnailNEXT Biometrics and M-Tech Join working on biometric cards Default ThumbnailSamsung Pay targets online payments Default ThumbnailFingerprint Cards reports 129% revenue boost in annual report