LinkedIn facing lawsuit over accusations private messages used to train AI

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LinkedIn accused of secretly changing user data settings

In this photo illustration, the business and employment-oriented network and platform owned by Microsoft, LinkedIn, logo seen displayed on a smartphone with an Artificial intelligence (AI) chip and symbol in the background.
(Image credit: Photo Illustration by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
  • LinkedIn is being accused of sharing user data for AI training
  • The lawsuit is seeking $1,000 per user, among other fees
  • LinkedIn made changes to FAQ's and privacy policy to "cover its tracks," lawsuit alleges

LinkedIn has been accused of sharing private messages and user data with third parties for AI training in a US lawsuit.

The Microsoft-owned job site has increasingly looked to position itself as a standard social media platform and has introduced a number of AI tools and features for LinkedIn Premium users.

The lawsuit claims LinkedIn “quietly” introduced a new privacy setting in August 2024 which opted users into sharing their data with third parties for AI training purposes.

"Covering its tracks"

The lawsuit goes on to state after this change to privacy settings, the company then updated its privacy policy to state that user information could be used for AI training, and the FAQ section was also changed to state users could choose to not have their data shared with third parties for AI training, but opting out would not affect data that had already been used for AI training.

“This behaviour suggests that LinkedIn was fully aware that it had violated its contractual promises and privacy standards and aimed to minimise public scrutiny,” the lawsuit alleges, which is seeking $1,000 per user for violations against the US federal Stored Communications Act, and an unspecified amount for California's unfair competition law and breach of contract.

A spokesperson for LinkedIn addressed the allegations, stating, “these are false claims with no merit” (Via BBC).The changes to the LinkedIn privacy policy were not enacted for users in the UK, European Economic Area, and Switzerland, an email sent to users last year says.

In 2024, LinkedIn settled a class action lawsuit against the platform for $6.625 million after being accused of overcharging advertisers by artificially inflating the number of views video adverts received between January 2015 and May 2023.

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Benedict Collins
Benedict Collins
Staff Writer (Security)

Benedict has been writing about security issues for over 7 years, first focusing on geopolitics and international relations while at the University of Buckingham. During this time he studied BA Politics with Journalism, for which he received a second-class honours (upper division), then continuing his studies at a postgraduate level, achieving a distinction in MA Security, Intelligence and Diplomacy. Upon joining TechRadar Pro as a Staff Writer, Benedict transitioned his focus towards cybersecurity, exploring state-sponsored threat actors, malware, social engineering, and national security. Benedict is also an expert on B2B security products, including firewalls, antivirus, endpoint security, and password management.

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