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Texas attorney general filed a confidentiality suit Monday Meta PlatformsFacebook’s parent company allegedly collects facial recognition data without users’ explicit consent.

State Attorney General Ken Paxton said the social network violated state consumer protection law by repeatedly capturing and commercializing biometric data in photos and videos for more than a decade without users’ informed consent. He said the company also shared data with third parties and did not destroy the information within a reasonable time.

“Facebook will no longer take advantage of people and their children with the intent to profit at the expense of the person’s safety and well-being,” Mr Paxton said in a statement. “This is another example of Big Tech’s deceptive business practices and it needs to stop. I will continue to fight for the privacy and safety of Texans.”

The lawsuit adds to Meta’s legal battles, as local and national regulators target big tech companies for their dominance and enforcement. In 2019, Facebook agreed to create a new surveillance layer. Confidentiality agreement with the Federal Trade Commissionand paid a $5 billion fine for it. The FTC and just about every state attorney general are trying to smash Meta for allegedly crushing competition to maintain its dominance on the social network.

“These allegations are baseless and we will defend ourselves vigorously,” said a Meta spokesperson.

Texas lawsuit comes a year after Facebook Filed a similar $650 million class action lawsuit in Illinois To use face tagging without users’ consent. Facebook was unable to obtain a dismissal of the lawsuit. The company, which is under scrutiny for the use of facial recognition data, also in November. delete facial recognition data more than one billion users.

In the absence of a federal privacy law, dozens of states have enacted their own laws on privacy, content control, and antitrust. In 2009, Texas passed a law banning the collection and use of facial recognition and other biometric data, such as fingerprints and retinal scans. Illinois also has its own data privacy law regarding facial recognition and other sensitive biometric information.

Mr Paxton said at a press conference on Monday that he wanted “billions of dollars” in compensation. There were an estimated 20 million Texas users, and each violation could result in penalties of up to $25,000, he said.