InfoTronics Biometric Time Clocks Unlawfully Capture Illinois Employees’ Fingerprint Scans, Class Action Says

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A proposed class action lawsuit accuses InfoTronics, Inc. of violating an Illinois privacy law by collecting, storing and profiting from the use of employees’ biometric data without consent.

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According to the 21-page lawsuit, the software company provides businesses with biometric-enabled timekeeping devices. The privacy suit was filed by an Illinois resident who says her employer required her to scan her fingerprint on an InfoTronics time clock each time she punched in or out of work.

The case claims the company has directly violated Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by capturing, storing and using the plaintiff’s and other residents’ fingerprint scans without first providing notice and acquiring informed written consent.

The plaintiff alleges she was never informed that the company was collecting and storing her fingerprint scans via its biometric time clocks. Likewise, the woman did not authorize the defendant to do so in any capacity, the filing asserts.

Moreover, InfoTronics has breached the state privacy law by failing to maintain publicly available policies that outline how long the biometric information will be stored and when it will be destroyed, the complaint contends.

The suit argues that the company’s allegedly unlawful data-collection practices put Illinois workers’ sensitive information at risk of unauthorized disclosure.

“Unlike key fobs, identification numbers, or swipe cards—which can be changed or replaced if stolen or compromised—fingerprint biometrics are unique, permanent biometric identifiers associated with each employee,” the case explains. “This exposes employees who are required to use an InfoTronics device as a condition of their employment to serious and irreversible privacy risks.”

The lawsuit looks to represent any Illinois residents who, in the past five years, had their fingerprints collected, used or otherwise obtained by the company via an InfoTronics device within the state.

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