The settlement of $18 billion (€15.5 billion) reached by Meta in a case taken by 29 US states could be a landmark moment for social media. Meta, of course, has not accepted any liability in the case, which centred on its use of data collected from children, but it has committed to potentially important changes in the protections for children and teenagers on its platforms. If implemented –a big “if” – these could have a significant impact. The legal case was based in large part on a 30 year-old piece of US legislation – the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) – and related to Meta’s collection and use of data from under 13 year-olds. Its wider importance is obvious – this data is central to the targeting of young people by Meta and other social media companies.The company’s decision to settle no doubt rested on legal advice and a potentially much larger financial exposure. But it surely also reflects the growing public alarm about the damage social media is causing to the mental health and development of many young people. An international backlash against these companies and their use of algorithms to encourage repeated use and push inappropriate content is gathering pace, meaning regulators and governments in other countries will be closely assessing the outcome.Meta, which operates Instagram and Facebook, will no doubt have feared that a full hearing of the case would have underlined serious questions about the extent of the efforts it has made to mitigate the harm caused by social media. As part of the settlement, it has agreed to put up new guardrails to protect younger people. It is clear that current safety features are not working. The new measures include limits on time on various sites, notification controls and promises of better age verification. Meta must get serious in implementing these measures and other social media companies need to follow. While the settlement applies to the US, other governments will push Meta and other social media companies like TikTok and YouTube to have similar controls in their countries. There is also a wider context. Some countries, such as Australia, have already implemented social media bans on younger people and other are considering or planning similar moves. While implementation of these is difficult, they do send an important message. Legal and regulatory action is growing in the US and elsewhere. In the EU, the European Commission has published preliminary findings against Meta after a two year investigation, saying it is breaching the Digital Services Act and encouraging “ compulsive use.”Where this all leads to remains to be seen. But the latest Meta settlement gives some hope that change is coming. Regulators, government and citizens need to push to ensure that this happens.