We can understand that some might feel that their privacy has been violated when your photos and information have been appropriated by someone else to be used in the creation of a fake profile. However what if you could get paid in the process? Would you mind as much then? Because over in New York, Sondra Arquiett is getting paid $134,000 by the feds for using her likeness in a fake Facebook profile.
This case actually dates back to 2010 where Arquiett was arrested on drug charges and where law enforcement officials then took photos off her phone. Those photos were then used by the DEA to create a fake Facebook profile in a bid to contact members of a drug ring, and Arquiett only found out about it when a friend brought it up to her.
She then tried to sue the DEA for $750,000 claiming the invasion of her privacy and violation of her constitutional rights, and it seems that instead of trying to fight the case, it seems that the DEA have decided to try and make it go away by offering at $134,000 settlement instead. Previously the DEA had argued that Arquiett had implicitly consented to have her photos used.
That being said, a spokesperson for the DEA was quoted as saying that the Justice Department was meeting with them to “make clear the necessity of protecting the privacy and safety of third parties in every aspect of our criminal investigations.” In the meantime it seems that Facebook isn’t particularly pleased about law enforcement creating fake profiles on its website either.