Meta has agreed to pay up to $17 billion to settle a landmark legal battle with US states over alleged harms to children. According to reports from Live Mint, the settlement covers 48 states, Washington, DC and several US territories, ending a trial that accused Meta of designing its platforms to keep young users hooked while allegedly concealing risks and collecting data from children under 13 without parental consent. The financial penalty represents only one part of the agreement, with the more significant impact expected from comprehensive new safety measures. As per Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones, the settlement would end harmful practices and provide meaningful protections for children against online risks. The agreement is among the largest consumer-protection settlements in U.S. history, outside of the major tobacco settlements of the 1990s.
One of the most significant changes will be a default two-hour daily limit on Facebook and Instagram for teenage users, as reported by Live Mint. The limit can only be overridden with parental permission, and time spent messaging or watching long-form video will not count toward the limit. Meta plans to eventually tighten these limits further if other major platforms adopt similar measures under the settlement's incentive structure. According to Meta, the measures include a two-hour daily usage limit, default nighttime restrictions, school-hour notification blocks, and enhanced parental supervision tools.
Meta will introduce automatic nighttime blocks for teenage accounts, preventing access between midnight and 6 a.m. local time, according to Live Mint. The company argues that restrictions on late-night use are important because teenagers can spend significant amounts of time on social media during sleep hours. If TikTok and YouTube agree to comparable measures, the overnight restriction could expand to 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Meta will limit features that encourage social comparison among teenagers, including hiding like counts and restricting engagement mechanisms that can encourage popularity measurement, as reported by Live Mint. The company will also disable certain cosmetic surgery and extreme makeup filters for young users. Additionally, Meta plans to introduce controls over video autoplay and offer teenagers the ability to choose a non-algorithmic feed, providing an alternative to feeds primarily determined by recommendation systems.
A major component involves strengthening Meta's age verification capabilities, as detailed in Live Mint reports. Meta prohibits children under 13 from using Facebook and Instagram, but younger users have historically bypassed restrictions through false birth dates. The company plans to rely heavily on age-assurance technology and AI-based detection rather than requiring government-issued identification. The settlement requires Meta to introduce age-appropriate content controls targeting bullying, eating disorders and self-harm-related content, with an independent auditor monitoring implementation. Prosecutors alleged that Meta knew Instagram could negatively affect teenagers, particularly girls, and potentially harm their mental and physical health.
Meta said the settlement builds on its existing efforts to give parents greater control and help teenagers have safer experiences online. The company said protecting teens and ensuring they have a positive experience on its platforms remains a priority. Meta also urged other major technology platforms to adopt similar safeguards, describing the agreement as an opportunity to establish a new industry standard for online safety. The federal litigation followed an investigation involving attorneys general from several states, including California, Florida, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, Tennessee and Vermont.
