GoKawiilMeta sued over alleged use of Instagram photos for smart glasses face recognition
A proposed class action filed by families in Illinois and California accuses Meta of harvesting biometric data from Facebook and Instagram photos to build a facial recognition system tied to its smart glasses, reportedly called 'NameTag.' The suit follows earlier reporting that Meta quietly embedded facial recognition code into the devices despite public denials that such a feature was planned. Meta has called the lawsuit meritless, saying no product has shipped and no final decision on the feature has been made.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The case highlights growing legal exposure for tech companies that use publicly posted photos to train biometric systems without explicit consent, an area already heavily regulated under laws like Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act. It also deepens scrutiny of Meta's smart glasses, which already face criticism for enabling covert recording, raising the stakes for the company's credibility on privacy commitments.
- Families allege Meta scraped Instagram and Facebook photos to build facial recognition for smart glasses.
- The lawsuit follows reports that Meta secretly added facial recognition code despite public denials of such plans.
- Meta says the suit is meritless and that no facial recognition feature has shipped to consumers.
Source: futurism.com — Victor Tangermann, 2026-09-15
Published there as: “Meta Is Using Instagram Users’ Photos to Build a Universal Facial Recognition System for Its Hated Smart Glasses, Class Action Lawsuit Claims”
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