Apple to Face $32.5 Billion Lawsuit Over Facial Recognition in Photos App
2026-08-04
PC Magazine
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Apple is facing a $32.5 billion class-action lawsuit in Illinois, alleging its Photos app uses AI-driven facial recognition to collect and store users' biometric data without consent, violating the state's Biometric Information Privacy Act. The court has allowed the case to proceed as a class action.[AI generated]
Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The facial recognition feature in Apple's Photos app is an AI system that processes biometric data. The lawsuit alleges that Apple collected this data without proper consent, violating privacy laws designed to protect users' biometric information. This is a breach of legal obligations and fundamental rights, which qualifies as harm under the AI Incident definition (violation of human rights or breach of legal obligations). The event describes an ongoing legal case about realized harm, not just potential harm or a response, so it is classified as an AI Incident.[AI generated]