Pandora’s ‘Virtual Try-On’ Feature Collects Biometric Data Without Consent, Class Action Alleges

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A proposed class action alleges the “Virtual Try-on” feature on Pandora Jewelry’s website illegally collects, stores and uses Illinois consumers’ facial biometric data without consent.

The 16-page case claims that Pandora Jewelry, the third-largest jewelry retailer in the United States, has violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) by failing to obtain express written permission before capturing and retaining users’ facial geometries, features and expressions through its Virtual Try-on feature on Pandora.net.

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The online tool allows potential customers to see how they look in certain pieces of jewelry by uploading photos of themselves, the complaint explains. The suit relays that some jewelry on Pandora’s website is accompanied with a hyperlinked tag that says, “Try It On,” and leads consumers to Tangiblee.com, a third-party website owned by software company yRuler, Inc.

“If already on their smartphone, [consumers] will, after granting tangible.com access to their camera, be prompted on this site to take a photo of their face,” the case states. “The Virtual Try-On feature then captures their facial geometry in order to determine how best to place jewelry objects such as necklaces and earrings.”

Under the BIPA, private entities must obtain adequate informed written consent before collecting, using or storing an individual’s biometric identifiers, the suit says. Per the complaint, Pandora’s privacy policy fails to mention that the company collects biometric data through its website. Further, the case argues that users never consented to have their biometric data collected in the first place since they are not given a chance to agree to its privacy policy.

Moreover, the BIPA stipulates that companies are required to notify consumers in writing of the “specific purpose and length of term for which such biometric identifiers or information are being collected, stored, and used,” and they must publish a retention schedule for permanently destroying consumers’ biometric data, the suit says.

However, Pandora has failed to fulfill the BIPA’s disclosure and consent requirements, the lawsuit alleges. Per the complaint, yRuler admitted in a 2021 press release that it stores this biometric data “for a short period of time” without further specifying the retention duration of these photos.

“Tellingly, at some point prior to the filing of this complaint, Defendants removed the Virtual Try-On capability from computers and smartphones its websites recognize as located in Illinois while maintaining it throughout the rest of the United States,” the suit reads.

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone in Illinois whose biometric data was captured, collected, received or otherwise obtained and/or stored by Pandora Jewelry through its app during the applicable statute of limitations period.

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