Illinois Legal Investigation: EA Sports Game Face Feature May Violate Players’ Privacy

Attorneys working with ClassAction.org are looking to speak with Illinois residents who used the Game Face feature while playing EA Sports games.

It’s possible that Electronic Arts (EA) may have violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by collecting players’ biometric information, including scans of their faces, without first obtaining consent and disclosing certain details about how the data would be used.

Game Face Collects Personal Information?

It’s believed that Electronic Arts may have collected players’ biometric data – a category of personal information that includes fingerprints, iris and retina scans, voiceprints, and scans of hand and face geometry – through the Game Face feature.

To use Game Face, a player uploads a picture of their face and the software uses it to generate a personalized avatar that can be played in certain EA Sports games, including FIFA, UFC, Fight Night Champion, NHL, Madden NFL, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, Grand Slam Tennis and NBA Live.

Scans of consumers’ facial geometry, also known as “faceprints,” constitute biometric information under the BIPA. Companies who collect this type of data in Illinois are required by law to disclose in writing certain details about how the information will be used and obtain consumers’ written consent to use it. They’re also required to develop and publish guidelines for how and when the data will be destroyed.

It’s possible that Electronic Arts may have collected players’ biometric data through the Game Face feature without complying with the BIPA’s requirements, which could be a violation of their privacy.

What Am I Signing Up For, Exactly?

You’re signing up for what’s known in the legal world as “mass arbitration,” a type of legal action that involves hundreds or thousands of consumers filing individual arbitration claims against the same company at the same time, over the same issue.

Electronic Arts’ user agreement, which all players agree to when they play one of the company’s games, includes what’s known as an arbitration clause. This means that Electronic Arts could argue that consumers agreed to arbitrate their claims against the company instead of filing lawsuits. That’s why some attorneys have decided to handle the privacy matter on a mass arbitration basis.

Mass arbitration is different from traditional litigation in that it takes place outside of court and does not involve filing a lawsuit and potentially going to trial. In general, arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution through which two parties resolve a disagreement before a third-party arbitrator instead of a judge or jury.

What Does This Cost?

It costs nothing to sign up. If the attorneys handling the mass arbitration win money on your behalf, they will be paid a percentage of your award. If they don’t win your claim, you don’t pay.

What Could I Get?

There are no guarantees, but those who sign up for the mass arbitration could potentially be entitled to $1,000 or more.

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