Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, has agreed to a $17.1 billion settlement with 47 states that accused the tech giant of knowingly causing harm to children through its platforms. The settlement aims to resolve accusations that Meta's social media services have negatively impacted minors' mental health.
As part of the agreement, Meta has committed to implementing significant changes to how its platforms operate for users under 18. These changes include a default two-hour daily time limit on app usage, disabling access to its apps at night by default, stopping all notifications during school hours, providing enhanced parental control mechanisms, and issuing alerts to teens after 15 minutes of continuous use. Meta is also calling for industry-wide commitments from other platforms like TikTok and YouTube to adopt similar measures.
The settlement concludes a federal trial and comes after years of legal challenges and parental advocacy. For some parents who have lost children to suicide, they see the settlement as a form of vindication, while acknowledging it does not bring their children back.
Victoria Hinks, whose daughter Owl died by suicide in 2024 at age 16, stated that the settlement feels like vindication. Hinks described her daughter's intense addiction to Instagram and TikTok, to the point where the family removed her bedroom door to prevent late-night scrolling. After Owl's death, Hinks found content related to eating disorders, depression, self-harm, and suicide on her daughter's phone, which she believes contributed to her death. "I’m hoping that the settlement hurts Meta a little bit," Hinks said. "I hope that Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t just think that this is the cost of doing business."
Lori Schott, from Merino, Colorado, whose daughter Annalee died by suicide in November 2020 at age 18, echoed similar sentiments. Schott found content on her daughter's phone that suggested Annalee felt inadequate. Months before her death, Annalee wrote, “Nobody is going to love me unless I look the part. I look at other girls’ profiles and it makes me feel worse.” Schott expressed that while the settlement figure is substantial, it does not fully compensate for her loss. "Today was like losing [Annalee] all over again… These changes could have saved my daughter’s life if they would have implemented them earlier," she said.
Erin Popolo, of South Brunswick, New Jersey, lost her 17-year-old daughter, Emily, to suicide in January 2021 after she was allegedly cyberbullied on Snapchat and Instagram. Popolo recounted attempts to report harmful posts about her daughter, which she claims were unsuccessful. "It’s bittersweet because we do want [Meta] held accountable — that’s what we’ve been asking for this whole time. But it doesn’t bring back our children," Popolo stated, adding that the settlement amount felt insufficient for the harm caused.
Matthew Bergman, an attorney and founder of the Social Media Victims Law Center, who represented some victims, described Meta's changes as significant steps in the right direction but noted that the company's internal safety teams had recommended such changes for years. Kathleen Spence, whose daughter Alexis experienced mental health issues that she attributes to social media, believes Meta's implemented changes represent substantial progress, calling the settlement "power to the parents."
Meta stated that all platforms should empower parents and support teens, urging peers to join in similar efforts for meaningful progress. While this settlement resolves the consolidated state cases, Meta still faces private litigation from other families. New Mexico and Florida did not participate in this settlement and have ongoing cases against the company.