Meta has agreed to pay up to $18 billion over 10 years in a major Meta child safety settlement with US states that accused Facebook and Instagram of contributing to harm among children and teenagers.
The agreement brings a federal trial in California to a halt, although it still requires formal approval from Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers.
The judge said on Wednesday that she was “inclined to grant it” and suspended proceedings while reviewing the final terms.
Meta has consistently denied wrongdoing in the case, which was filed in 2023 and alleged violations of federal and state laws linked to the design and operation of its social media platforms.
New Restrictions Planned for Teen Users
The settlement goes beyond financial compensation.
Meta will introduce new safeguards for teenage users, including daily usage limits and overnight restrictions intended to reduce excessive social media use.
Most of the changes are expected to be introduced within months.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the agreement allowed states to secure reforms without waiting through years of litigation.
“Instead of getting tied up in years of trials and appeals, we have secured the changes we were after,” he said.
Money paid under the agreement will be used by states for youth online safety programmes and other priorities.
The total settlement could reach $18 billion, although 30% of the amount depends on YouTube and TikTok adopting comparable child safety measures.
States Take Different Positions
The settlement covers 48 states, the District of Columbia and three US territories, with 51 states and territories agreeing to a combined package worth about $17.1 billion.
Texas reached a separate agreement valued at around $1 billion.
New Mexico has chosen to continue its litigation, while Florida has also rejected the settlement.
The agreement is expected to put further pressure on other major social media companies, including TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube, to strengthen protections for younger users.
Questions Remain Over Enforcement
Not everyone is convinced the deal goes far enough.
Meta whistleblower Kelly Stonelake criticised the company for waiting until legal action before adopting stronger safety measures.
“Meta spent years insisting that the people raising these concerns were wrong, that its products were safe, and that it could be trusted to police itself,” she said.
Experts have also raised practical questions about enforcement, particularly around verifying users’ ages.
Professor Alan Woodward of the University of Surrey said usage limits and overnight blocks were relatively straightforward to introduce, but warned that imperfect age verification could weaken their effectiveness.
Dr Holly Bear of the University of Oxford described the measures as an important first step, while cautioning that young people often use several platforms at once.
The settlement may therefore resolve one legal battle, but the wider debate over how social media companies protect children is far from over.
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