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Get a sample of your bodily fluids ready: Elon Musk is coming for them.
X, the social media company formerly known as Twitter, announced in its updated privacy policies that it will begin collecting users’ biometric data next month. “Based on your consent, we may collect and use your biometric information for safety, security, and identification purposes,” the policy says. The catch — you don’t have a choice. According to X users, they have already been prompted to accept pop-ups for the policy that wouldn’t close unless they hit “got it.”
But the new policy, which goes into effect on September 29, won’t be the first time X has gathered biometric data. In July, X user and Illinois resident Mark Martell filed a lawsuit complaining that the company performs facial recognition scans on all photos uploaded to the platform, in violation of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.
Though the company did not specify what sort of biometric data it will collect, based on their previous track record, it will likely include information from your face, eyes and fingers. A spokesperson for the company told CBS that the biometric data collection is only for X Premium users who will be required to submit a photo of their Government ID as well as a selfie.
Musk has yet to comment on the changes, but Cockburn suspects they are part of his plan to create an “everything” app that includes video and audio calls — and apparently biological information about its users.
But wait, there’s more. X could not claim to be all-inclusive (or all-intrusive) if it didn’t also collect your education and employment history. The platform promises to use the data “to recommend potential jobs for you, to share with potential employers when you apply for a job, to enable employers to find potential candidates and to show you more relevant advertising.” Cockburn can’t imagine that employers will ever flock to X to find quality candidates — after all, most hiring managers are looking for tweets that suggest they don’t hire a given candidate — but he’s glad Musk has his back if things ever go south.
