Beauty Systems Group Fingerprint Scans Violate Illinois Workers’ Privacy, Class Action Says

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges Beauty Systems Group, LLC has illegally collected and stored Illinois workers’ biometric fingerprint scans without consent.

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The 11-page complaint claims the distributor of salon and beauty products has run afoul of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by failing to obtain proper consent before capturing and storing employees’ biometric data in its computer network.

The company has also violated the BIPA by neglecting to disclose the length and purpose for which workers’ data would be kept and when it would be destroyed, the suit alleges. What’s more, the defendant has also failed to store the sensitive personal information with the degree of care required by the BIPA, the case contends.

According to the filing, Beauty Systems Group collected employees’ biometric data via a fingerprint scanner which it uses to track shift attendance and work hours. The defendant required workers to scan their fingerprints when clocking in and out each day, and this information was then sent back to the company’s database for timekeeping purposes, the complaint explains.

By law, the defendant’s employees should have been informed that their personal data was being captured, and given details on how long and for what purpose it was being stored and used, the lawsuit claims.

Further, the suit alleges that Beauty Systems Group stored this data with less protection than is required by BIPA. Per the case, the company maintained networks housing other employee information, such as Social Security numbers and private records, with “demonstrably more security” than its biometric scanners.

Fingerprints are recognized as biometric identifiers under the BIPA, and safeguarding this personal information is becoming increasingly important, the lawsuit stresses.

“Unlike other forms of personal identification, such as photo IDs or passwords, fingerprints are immutable aspects of our bodies,” the suit reads. “This makes them a promising source of future identification-related technology, particularly in our increasingly insecure technological world.”

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone whose biometric data was captured and/or stored by Beauty Systems Group, LLC in Illinois.

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