Oakland, California, 26 August (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Meta Platforms has agreed to a landmark settlement worth up to $17.1 billion with US states and territories over allegations that Facebook and Instagram used addictive features that harmed children and teenagers. The Meta settlement, which remains subject to court approval, also requires substantial changes to how the company’s platforms operate for younger users.
The agreement resolves claims that Meta designed features to encourage compulsive use, exposed younger users to serious harms and misled the public about platform safety. Officials also alleged violations of children’s privacy protections involving the collection of data from users under 13. Meta has denied wrongdoing.
Agreement brings multistate litigation to a close
The settlement was reached during a federal trial in California and covers claims involving 47 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands. The litigation formed part of a wider series of legal challenges concerning the effect of social media platforms on younger users.
The financial payments will be made over several years, with individual jurisdictions receiving different allocations. New York Attorney General Letitia James said her state could receive up to $1.15 billion, with funds intended for education, mental health services and programmes addressing unhealthy social media use among young people.
Facebook and Instagram face major safety changes
The Meta settlement goes beyond financial compensation by requiring significant changes to Facebook and Instagram.
Under the proposed agreement, Meta must restrict users under 18 to a maximum of two hours per day unless parental controls allow otherwise. Younger users will also face restrictions on accessing the platforms overnight, while notifications will be limited during school hours and in the evening.
Meta will also strengthen age-verification measures and give children and parents options to avoid algorithmic feeds designed around personalised engagement. Other measures are intended to restrict potentially harmful content and reduce features that authorities argue encourage excessive use.
Attorneys general welcome child protection measures
Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson described the agreement as establishing meaningful protections for younger users.
“Digital platforms that cater to children have a duty to shield impressionable minds from the risks of unchecked exposure to social media,” Wilson said.
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr’s office described the agreement as the largest state consumer protection settlement in US history outside the tobacco settlements of the 1990s.
Years of scrutiny led to the legal challenge
The dispute dates partly to lawsuits filed in 2023, when a coalition of state attorneys general accused Meta of designing and implementing features that they alleged encouraged children and teenagers to spend excessive amounts of time on its services.
The litigation became one of the most significant US tests of claims linking social media design practices with harms experienced by younger users. Similar legal challenges have involved other major platforms, including TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube.
Settlement could influence wider social media rules
The Meta settlement matters beyond the financial payment because its product requirements could establish a benchmark for how regulators and courts approach children’s use of major social networks.
Age checks, daily limits, nighttime restrictions and stronger parental controls could substantially change how teenagers interact with Facebook and Instagram in the United States.
Court approval is the next key step
The proposed agreement must receive court approval before becoming binding. California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office said the settlement would require Meta to introduce major platform changes within months once approved.
Legal pressure on the wider social media industry is also continuing, meaning the settlement is unlikely to end broader scrutiny of how online platforms design products and safeguards for children.
