Just a few years ago, the thought of employees being able to “punch in” at work using their fingerprint seemed like pure science fiction. Today, fingerprint-based biometrics is widely used as a go-to method for organizational timekeeping.

At the same time, however, the use of biometric fingerprint readers have become the primary target for complex class action litigation under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”). To further complicate matters, various states and municipalities are enacting new, stringent laws modeled off BIPA to regulate the commercial use of fingerprint biometrics.

It is thus imperative that all companies using fingerprint biometrics take actionable steps to leverage this valuable form of biometric data in an effective fashion maintains compliance with the law and minimizes liability exposure.

Originally published in the Fall 2020 issue of The Update, a newsletter publication of the Ohio Association of Civil Trial Attorneys (“OACTA”).