Revolut is in the legal crosshairs over allegations of biometric data mishandling, potentially leading to hefty million-dollar damages in the US.

Revolut, the payments and fintech sensation, finds itself on the precipice of a deep, deep legal chasm. Accusations, filed in a Cook County report, assert that the company has engaged in digital impropriety by unlawfully harvesting, storing, and utilizing customers' biometric data. The latest lawsuit, full of contemporary privacy concerns that are terrifying if you think about it, hints at potential trouble for the financial maverick.

The Allegations

Revolut faces accusations of breaching privacy regulations in Illinois, particularly the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). The charge alleges that the fintech Fintech Financial Technology (fintech) is defined as ay technology that is geared towards automating and enhancing the delivery and application of financial services. The origin of the term fintechs can be traced back to the 1990s where it was primarily used as a back-end system technology for renowned financial institutions. However, it has since grown outside the business sector with an increased focus upon consumer services.What Purpose Do Fintechs Serve?The main purpose of fintechs would be to suppl Financial Technology (fintech) is defined as ay technology that is geared towards automating and enhancing the delivery and application of financial services. The origin of the term fintechs can be traced back to the 1990s where it was primarily used as a back-end system technology for renowned financial institutions. However, it has since grown outside the business sector with an increased focus upon consumer services.What Purpose Do Fintechs Serve?The main purpose of fintechs would be to suppl Read this Term maestro, in its quest to identify customers, overlooked the concepts of transparency and consent, getting into murky territory by withholding vital details on data usage, storage durations, and potential liaisons with third parties.

London fintech Revolut could face million-dollar damages after biometric data lawsuit https://t.co/DS7wFKdIlH

— Standard News (@standardnews) January 9, 2024

Revolut’s Identity Verification

Revolut's biometric pas de deux involves the use of 'selfies' – Yes. Selfies. It’s allegedged that users are asked to take selfies in order to verify their identity. These are then compared to passport or driver's license photos. However, the court insists that the manner in which the images were captured violated BIPA's terms, threatening Revolut with damages as high as $5,000 for each transgression over the past half-decade. Ouff.

Tech Companies and Privacy

This isn’t the first time a tech company’s had issues around data collection. While Facebook once paid a jaw-dropping $650 million for breaching BIPA rules, Google managed to sidestep a similar issue through clever lawyering.

Revolut's response? So far, silence. With over 35 million users worldwide, including a million in the US, this lawsuit is certainly a concern Revolut's, especially after a $20 million loss to cyber pirates in a recent software vulnerability exploit. The company also recently paused operations in the UK. Will Revolut come out unscathed, or will they pay through the nose? Only time will tell.

What is truly worrying, though, is the rate at which we hand over data, including biometrics in our day-to-day lives. Phone numbers, email addresses, those are understandable. Pictures of your face? Your fingerprints? Your voice? It’s all very worrying. Of course, we know that much of this information is stored on your devices, not on a company’s servers, but still… The dystopian future crawls ever closer.