Meta Agrees To $17.1bn Settlement, Sets App Limits For Teen Users

Tech giant Meta has agreed to a $17.1 billion settlement to resolve a lawsuit accusing the company of designing Facebook and Instagram to be addictive to teenagers.

Under the terms of the agreement, Meta will introduce mandatory two-hour daily usage limits for teen accounts. The company will also block app access and notifications late at night and during school hours.

Additionally, Meta agreed to implement stricter age verification measures to block children under 13, reduce features like “likes” on teen accounts, and offer non-personalized feeds.

The settlement, led by a coalition of U.S. state attorneys general, will use the majority of funds to resolve state privacy claims and finance youth online safety programs. A third-party auditor will be appointed to monitor Meta’s compliance with the agreement.

Meta’s legal team stated that the new usage limits set a positive path forward, while encouraging other social media platforms like TikTok and YouTube to adopt similar safety measures.