Key facts
- Meta will pay $18 billion to 48 U.S. states to settle child-safety claims.
- Users under 18 will face a daily time limit of two hours on Instagram and Facebook.
- Access to Meta's apps will be blocked for minors from midnight to 6 a.m.
- Meta will strengthen its technology to identify and restrict underage users.
- Many new child safety features will be enabled by default for users under 18.
Meta Platforms has agreed to a historic $18 billion settlement with 48 U.S. states to implement significant changes aimed at restricting children's access to its apps, including Instagram and Facebook. The settlement, to be paid out over a decade, mandates new rules for users under 18.
Key changes include a daily time limit of two hours and a block on app usage from midnight to 6 a.m. Meta will also strengthen its age estimation technology to better prevent users under 13 from creating accounts and ensure teens are in age-appropriate accounts. If a user is identified as under 13 and removed, Meta will also check the ages of their friends. Features like the time limits and night mode will be enabled by default, though other features such as chronological feeds will remain opt-in.
While Meta acknowledged the changes represent a significant step in child safety, critics like former Meta engineering director Arturo Béjar cautioned that the settlement is a "significant milestone" but does not make Instagram suddenly safe. Béjar pointed out that Meta defines harm within the agreement and expressed concern that the platform's design still encourages addictive behavior, even with time limits. He advocates for addressing the impact of content recommendation algorithms.
Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, expressed disappointment that the settlement does not default to turning off recommendation algorithms that could connect children to predators or lead them down "dangerous rabbit holes." Meta stated that users over 18 can adopt some controls individually, such as time-limit reminders, but will not have access to the full suite of teen-specific settings. The effectiveness of past protections rolled out by Meta has been questioned by researchers.