Meta will impose daily limits on child Instagram users and pay $17 BILLION to settle claims it deliberately got youngsters hooked on its social media platformsSee more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy ALEX HAMMER, US MEDIA CORRESPONDENT Updated: 15:29 BST, 26 August 2026
Social media giant Meta will pay almost $17 billion to settle a lawsuit that claimed its products Instagram and Facebook harmed child users.Wednesday's settlement resolves a lawsuit brought against Meta by 29 states over claims Instagram and Facebook were deliberately designed to get young users hooked.Meta was also accused of misleading users about how safe children were on its platforms, and of improperly collecting their personal data. As part of the settlement, Meta will impose daily usage limits on child users of Instagram and Facebook, and also make it harder to access both platforms at night.'Today, we have secured a settlement with Meta that will make social media less dangerous for our kids and make a world of a difference for children and their families,' California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement. He maintained that Meta will enact the 'massive transformations' on its platforms 'within months.'Meta owns and operates Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp.The trial was co-led by Bonta and AGs from Colorado, New Jersey and Kentucky. Meta boss Mark Zuckerburg, pictured in the White House in September 2025 California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who co-led the 29-state effort to sue the social media company, said in a statement that changes would be seen on platforms like Facebook and Instagram 'within months'Breaking story, more to follow...
