X, formerly known as Twitter, will begin collecting users’ biometric data, according to its new website privacy policy Which was first observed by Bloomberg. The policy also says the company wants to collect users’ work and education history. The policy page states that the change will take effect on September 29.
“Based on your consent, we may collect and use your biometric information for safety, security and identification purposes,” the updated policy said. Although X does not define what it means by biometric information, it is typically used to describe a person’s physical characteristics, such as their face or fingerprints. X also did not provide any details on how it plans to collect it.
The company told Bloomberg that biometrics is for premium users and will give them the option to submit their government ID and a photo to add a layer of verification. Biometric data can be extracted from both an ID card and a photo for matching purposes, Bloomberg reports.
“This will additionally help us, for those who choose, link an account to a real person through government-issued ID processing,” X said in a statement to Bloomberg. “This will also help X fight impersonation attempts and make the platform more secure.”
The social network was named in Proposed class action lawsuit It was alleged last month that X illegally captured, stored and used Illinois residents’ biometric data, including facial scans, without consent. The lawsuit alleges that Company
In addition to the new changes around biometric information, the updated X policy says it will start storing users’ employment and education histories as well.
“We may collect and use your personal information (such as employment history, educational history, employment preferences, skills and abilities, job search activity and engagement, etc.) to recommend potential jobs to you, and to share it with potential employers when you apply for a job, to enable employers to find potential candidates, and to show you more relevant ads,” the updated policy states.
This move appears to be related X trial feature Which allows organizations verified on the platform to post job listings on their profiles. The social media giant has also created an administrator @XHiring account. The hiring initiative is part of Musk’s plans to turn X into an “app for everything.”
X did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.