Twitter Eyes Collecting Biometric Data, Job Histories, Under New Privacy Policy
Twitter, also known as X, is opening the door to collecting people’s biometric data as part of a new user verification system, according to the company’s new privacy policy.
The social media platform mentions the possible biometric data collection in X’s new privacy policy, which was updated this week and will go into effect on Sept. 29th.
However, the biometric data collection will be optional. The privacy policy notes: “Based on your consent, we may collect and use your biometric information for safety, security, and identification purposes.”
X didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. But the company told Bloomberg the biometric data can be collected for users of X Premium, previously known as Twitter Blue, which offers subscribers a verified checkmark in exchange for paying $8 per month.
To verify a subscriber's identity, X Premium users can choose to submit a government-issued ID. The company then plans on extracting the facial data from the government ID and matching it to a submitted selfie from the user to confirm their identity. The process will require the user consenting to storing their information for up to 30 days with X and sharing it with an Israeli company called AU10TIX, which will be charged with the ID verification.
“This will additionally help us tie, for those that choose, an account to a real person by processing their government issued ID,” X told Bloomberg. “This will also help X fight impersonation attempts and make the platform more secure.”
That said, the optional ID verification system could alienate some users, who fear X will mishandle some of their most sensitive data. The other notable change to X’s privacy policy is how the company plans on collecting user’s job history and
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