Excerpt from Reuters Article, Published on October 28, 2025
Austrian privacy group Noyb has filed a criminal complaint against Clearview AI, accusing the U.S. – based facial recognition company of illegally collecting photos and videos of European Union residents. The case could mark the first attempt to apply criminal enforcement of the GDPR against a non – EU company, testing whether personal accountability can succeed where administrative fines have failed.
According to Noyb, Clearview has systematically scraped billions of images from public websites and social platforms to build one of the world’s largest facial recognition databases — reportedly exceeding 60 billion records. The group argues that this practice violates the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by processing biometric data without user consent and without a valid legal basis.
If Austrian prosecutors accept the complaint, the case could expose Clearview and its executives to personal liability, including potential criminal sanctions. Noyb’s founder, privacy lawyer Max Schrems, said the complaint seeks to hold the company accountable after years of noncompliance and unpaid fines from previous EU rulings.
Regulators in France, Italy, Greece, and the Netherlands have already fined Clearview nearly €100 million for similar breaches. The company is also contesting a £7.5 million fine in the United Kingdom, arguing that UK GDPR should not apply because its services are marketed only to foreign law enforcement agencies. However, UK courts recently rejected that argument, affirming that its data processing activities fall under British jurisdiction.
Noyb’s latest legal action could set a precedent for stronger GDPR enforcement against foreign companies that process Europeans’ biometric data. Schrems emphasized that Clearview’s vast surveillance capability undermines privacy rights and “threatens the foundation of a free society.”
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