ACLU v. Clearview AI — Illinois BIPA Consent Order Restricting Faceprint Sales
IL · ACLU v. Clearview AI, Inc., No. 2020-CH-04353 (Cir. Ct. Cook Cty., Ill.)
Clearview AI, which scraped billions of online photos to build a face-search engine sold to police, agreed to a nationwide consent order in May 2022. Clearview is permanently barred from selling its faceprint database to most private U.S. businesses, with additional Illinois-specific restrictions on government contracts.
Technical detail
ACLU v. Clearview AI, Inc., No. 2020-CH-04353 (Cir. Ct. Cook Cty., Ill., consent order May 9, 2022). Permanent nationwide injunction under BIPA: (1) Clearview cannot sell access to its face-vector database to private entities or most non-law-enforcement government users; (2) five-year ban on selling to any Illinois state or local government, including police; (3) maintain opt-out program for Illinois residents.
Who is protected: Illinois residents and U.S. private-sector consumers vis-à-vis Clearview face-search service
Who must comply: Clearview AI, Inc.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | IL |
|---|---|
| Level | State |
| Status | In effect |
| Protection strength | Limited protection |
| Effective date | 2022-05-09 |
| Citation | ACLU v. Clearview AI, Inc., No. 2020-CH-04353 (Cir. Ct. Cook Cty., Ill.) |
| Topics | facial recognition · biometric data · consumer data privacy · police and surveillance AI |
| Last verified | 2026-06-17 |
| Official source | ACLU v. Clearview AI — ACLU case page ↗ |
More AI rules in IL
- IL Bar AI Standing Committee · In effect
- IL Digital Voice/Likeness Act · In effect
- IL WOPR (AI therapy ban) · In effect
- IL EO 2024-01 · In effect
- IL AI Video Interview Act (2019, first-in-nation) · In effect
- IL BIPA (2008, first-in-nation biometric law) · In effect
Related facial recognition rules elsewhere
- Virginia § 15.2-1723.2 (facial recognition by local law enforcement, eff. July 1, 2026) · In effect
- Ban biometric recognition in public accommodations (Ban The Scan) · Proposed / pending
- Limit facial recognition in residential buildings (Ban The Scan) · Proposed / pending
- Texas v. Google · In effect
- Lorenzano-Nunez v. Roestenberg — FR wrongful arrest (2026) · Blocked / in litigation
- Montgomery County MD Police Directive FC 0627 · In effect
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