Apple is facing yet another lawsuit. This time, the company is being sued for its Apple Watch wearable device, which the legal complaint states is racially biased in some of its key health related features.

The Cupertino based giant has been hit with a class action lawsuit in the Southern District of New York. The brand is facing the legal dispute over its smartwatch allegedly having a racial bias on darker tones for its blood oximeter health feature. According to the documents, a New Yorker named Alex Morales is claiming that the Apple Watch that he purchased over a year ago is “purported to measure blood oxygen levels and he believed it did this without regard to skin tone which was relevant to him based on his skin tone.”

Apple

As per the legal filing, Morales “expected the product would not incorporate biases and defects of pulse oximetry with respect to persons of darker skin tone.” He further added that “as a result of the false and misleading representations, the Product is sold at a premium price, approximately no less than $400, excluding tax and sales.” So Morales is filing a class action law suit, which will also cover all New Yorkers who purchased the Apple Watch during the statute of limitations. Furthermore, the lawsuit also listed research notes from a study that was conducted during the pandemic.

This was done to help test COVID-19 cases by checking the blood oxygen saturation percentage. They cited this research and stated that it “confirmed the clinical significance of racial bias of pulse oximetry. For decades, there have been reports that such devices were significantly less accurate in measuring blood oxygen levels based on skin color.” Apple has responded to this lawsuit saying that the Apple Watch is “only designed for general fitness and wellness purposes. Blood Oxygen app measurements are not intended for medical use, including self-diagnosis or consultation with a doctor.”

RELATED:

(Via)

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR