ICE Arrests Soar Across U.S., and Meta Agrees to Make Major Changes to Instagram and Facebook

A landmark legal dispute between social media giant Meta and 29 US state attorneys general has finally concluded, with the company agreeing to pay $18 billion over a decade and overhaul safety measures for minors using Instagram and Facebook. The lawsuit, led by the attorneys general, accused Meta executives like Mark Zuckerberg of exploiting data from young users while denying knowledge of the platforms' negative impacts.

While the settlement amount is a fraction of Meta's $130 billion annual capital expenditure, it remains a substantial sum to be distributed among the states involved. Had Meta chosen to contest the case and lost, it could have faced penalties reaching $200 billion. The settlement requires Meta to implement several significant changes to its platforms.

These changes include a two-hour daily time limit for minors, nighttime blocks restricting access to feeds, limits on school-time usage, enhanced age verification, stricter content moderation, and reduced promotion of social comparison features. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser hailed the settlement as "meaningful and well beyond what any court has ordered or is likely to order."

For the next five years, Meta's two-hour time limit for minors on Instagram and Facebook will be mandatory. If other platforms like Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube adopt similar restrictions, Meta is set to reduce its limit to one hour and extend enforcement for an additional decade. Although this settlement does not constitute a comprehensive solution to child internet safety, it marks a considerable concession from Meta, a powerful social media company.

Northwestern University law professor James Speta, who focuses on internet policy, emphasized the significance of the agreement, stating that Meta and other companies faced mounting pressure from the public, Congress, and state legislatures to modify their business practices. These new rules are designed to diminish user engagement on Instagram and Facebook.