USA-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase faces a lawsuit brought forward by a California District Court, alleging the exchange of illegally collecting and storing customer fingerprints and facial templates.

In a May 1 filing, a Coinbase user claimed that one of the Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements of the centralized crypto exchange, specifically the need for providing a valid ID and a self-portrait, violates certain provisions of the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) of Illinois.

The suit filed by an individual by the name of Michael Massel argues that BIPA required Coinbase to get permission from users when collecting their biometric information, which includes fingerprints and facial scans, and that Coinbase also needed to provide the reasoning behind requiring such data, how long it would be stored for, how it shall be used and how Coinbase intends to permanently destroy it.

“Coinbase had no written policy, made available to the public, establishing a retention schedule and guidelines for permanently destroying biometric information,” the suit claimed. Seeking damages of $5,000 per intentional BIPA violation, or $1,000 if the court finds the alleged violations to be unwilful to pay for attorney fees and related costs, the court case is beginning to gain more attention in the crypto space.

At the time of writing, Coinbase have not provided any comments to follow-up on the matter.

Sources:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/coinbase-faces-suit-over-alleged-privacy-violations-in-biometrics-collection

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-05-02/coinbase-sued-for-privacy-violations-over-customer-biometrics

https://www.advfn.com/stock-market/COIN/BTCUSD/crypto-news/90921309/coinbase-faces-suit-over-alleged-privacy-violation