Updates to Illinois’ Biometric Privacy Law Too Small a Step in the Right Direction, Says ITIF

WASHINGTON—Following Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signing into law an amendment to the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA), the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), the leading think tank for science and technology policy, issued the following statement from Senior Policy Manager Ash Johnson:

BIPA is a prime example of privacy legislation gone too far. With steep fines for even minor violations and a private right of action that has gone out of control, with multiple multi-million-dollar settlements. This has led companies to limit the technology available to Illinois consumers or even pull out of the state entirely.

The new amendment to BIPA makes a bad law slightly better, particularly by allowing companies to obtain consent electronically for the collection of biometric data and reducing the penalties for violations from $1,000 per instance to $1,000 per person. However, these changes fail to address the explosion of BIPA-related lawsuits since a 2019 ruling determined that plaintiffs are not required to show harm. Companies still have a strong incentive to continue limiting the technology available in Illinois.

Biometric data collection is not the Big Bad Wolf privacy fundamentalists make it out to be. There are countless beneficial uses of biometric data, and overly burdensome laws like BIPA place costly barriers in the way of reaping these benefits. A balanced federal data privacy law that preempts state laws like BIPA would protect biometric and all other forms of personal data without hindering innovation. In the meantime, states should look to BIPA as a cautionary tale and avoid costly regulation that benefits trial lawyers far more than ordinary consumers.

Contact: Nicole Hinojosa, [email protected]