Meta is facing a proposed class-action lawsuit in the US over allegations that it used photographs from Facebook and Instagram to train generative AI systems and develop facial-recognition technology without obtaining the required consent.
Filed on September 4, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the lawsuit accuses Meta of collecting, storing and using facial images and biometric information from photographs uploaded to its platforms. The plaintiffs allege that the company violated Illinois and California privacy laws by extracting biometric information without providing proper notice or obtaining consent.
At the centre of the case is NameTag, an unreleased facial-recognition system reportedly developed for Meta’s smart glasses and associated AI software. According to the complaint, NameTag could convert faces captured by the glasses into biometric signatures, or “faceprints,” and compare them with facial information allegedly obtained from images uploaded to Facebook and Instagram.
AI Training Practices Also Under Scrutiny
The lawsuit goes beyond NameTag and challenges Meta’s use of photographs in developing its generative AI systems. The complaint alleges that images from Facebook and Instagram were used to train models including Emu and Muse Image and that biometric information could have been extracted from people appearing in those photographs.
The allegations raise broader questions around how social media images can be reused for AI development, particularly when people appearing in photographs may not have separately consented to biometric processing. However, the lawsuit represents the plaintiffs’ claims and does not establish that Meta violated the law.
Meta Rejects the Claims
Meta has rejected the allegations and said the lawsuit is without merit. The company has maintained that it has been transparent about how information is used to develop and improve its AI products.
Regarding NameTag, Meta has said that the technology was never released to consumers and that no final decision had been made about whether it would become a product. Meta has also denied building a universal face database.
The controversy around NameTag intensified after code associated with the technology was discovered inside Meta’s AI companion application for its smart glasses. Meta subsequently removed the code following reporting about the system.
Potential Impact on Millions
The proposed class action was brought by parents and children from Illinois and California, but the proposed class could extend across the US. It covers people whose images were uploaded to Facebook or Instagram, as well as individuals whose images were submitted to Meta’s generative AI systems.
The complaint invokes Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act and California privacy and publicity laws. The plaintiffs are seeking monetary damages and other legal remedies.
The case adds to Meta’s history of scrutiny over biometric data. The company previously agreed to pay $650 million to settle an Illinois facial-recognition lawsuit in 2020 and $1.4 billion to resolve separate biometric-data allegations brought by Texas in 2024.
As Meta expands its AI and smart-glasses ambitions, the lawsuit could intensify scrutiny over how photographs, facial information and other personal data are used to develop emerging AI technologies.
𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐮𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 WhatsApp Channel now! 👈📲
𝑭𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝑺𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝑴𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆𝐬 👉 Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram
