<p>A US federal judge has given final approval to Facebook's $650 million payment to settle a privacy dispute between the California group and 1.6 million users in the US state of Illinois.</p>.<p>The decision was issued on Friday, according to documents seen by AFP on Sunday.</p>.<p>Chicago attorney Jay Edelson sued Facebook in 2015, alleging the social network illegally collected biometric data to identify faces in violation of a 2008 Illinois privacy law.</p>.<p>At the end of January 2020, Facebook agreed to pay $550 million after it failed to get the lawsuit -- filed as a class action in 2018 -- dismissed.</p>.<p>But in July 2020 the judge in the case, James Donato, ruled that the amount was insufficient.</p>.<p>During the trial, it emerged that Facebook was violating Illinois law by storing biometric data -- digital scans of people's faces, in support of its face-tagging feature -- without users' consent.</p>.<p>In 2019, Facebook proposed that the facial recognition feature be optional only.</p>.<p>According to Donato, the regulation is "a landmark result" and represents a "major win for consumers in the hotly contested area of digital privacy."</p>.<p>"It is one the largest settlements ever for a privacy violation," he commented, noting that plaintiffs will receive at least $345 each in compensation.</p>.<p>Facebook was not immediately available to comment on the decision.</p>
<p>A US federal judge has given final approval to Facebook's $650 million payment to settle a privacy dispute between the California group and 1.6 million users in the US state of Illinois.</p>.<p>The decision was issued on Friday, according to documents seen by AFP on Sunday.</p>.<p>Chicago attorney Jay Edelson sued Facebook in 2015, alleging the social network illegally collected biometric data to identify faces in violation of a 2008 Illinois privacy law.</p>.<p>At the end of January 2020, Facebook agreed to pay $550 million after it failed to get the lawsuit -- filed as a class action in 2018 -- dismissed.</p>.<p>But in July 2020 the judge in the case, James Donato, ruled that the amount was insufficient.</p>.<p>During the trial, it emerged that Facebook was violating Illinois law by storing biometric data -- digital scans of people's faces, in support of its face-tagging feature -- without users' consent.</p>.<p>In 2019, Facebook proposed that the facial recognition feature be optional only.</p>.<p>According to Donato, the regulation is "a landmark result" and represents a "major win for consumers in the hotly contested area of digital privacy."</p>.<p>"It is one the largest settlements ever for a privacy violation," he commented, noting that plaintiffs will receive at least $345 each in compensation.</p>.<p>Facebook was not immediately available to comment on the decision.</p>