Meta's $18bn settlement may hasten reckoning for social media on child safety
Meta's decision to settle the case on Wednesday came as a surprise. I was expecting weeks of courtroom drama as 29 states â almost two-thirds of North America - took on one US tech giant. Technic…
Meta's decision to settle the case on Wednesday came as a surprise.
I was expecting weeks of courtroom drama as 29 states â almost two-thirds of North America - took on one US tech giant.
Technically, the trial was about children's online privacy. It was based on a US law called the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which is nearly 30 years old and predates all of today's biggest social platforms.
It centred around Meta's historic gathering and use of data belonging to children under the age of 13 over a period of several years.
In reality, it was a co-ordinated attack on the firm's online safety credentials.
Meta, alongside other social media apps, is under fire around the world as 2026 is shaping up to be a year of reckoning for the entire industry - perhaps our days of doomscrolling are numbered.
Meta to pay up to $18bn to settle claims its platforms harm children
Meta has fought hard, over multiple lawsuits spanning many months and at great expense, to defend its commitment to protecting children on its platforms.
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