Facebook parent company Meta agreed to pay $725 million to settle a lawsuit related to a privacy breach of users. The lawsuit accused the social media giant of allowing third-party companies, including Cambridge Analytica, to access private user data without user consent. The settlement was approved by a judge and will be paid to US Facebook users who had an active account between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022.
While Meta has denied any wrongdoing, the settlement brings an end to a long-running legal battle that started over data harvesting allegations on Facebook. The lawsuit began in 2018 when the company was accused of sharing personal data of over 80 million users with Cambridge Analytica, a British law firm that worked closely with former US president Donald Trump on his presidential campaign. The settlement will provide compensation to affected users.
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Affected users have until August 25, 2023, to make a claim for a portion of the settlement. Meta has set up a “Facebook user privacy settlement” page to help make these claims. US users with an active account between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022 can apply online by answering a few questions and selecting their preferred payment method. The options include direct deposit, PayPal, Mastercard, Zelle, and Venmo.
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Facebook has been under scrutiny since its biggest ever Cambridge Analytica privacy breach that exposed private data of over 80 million users. Following the breach, Facebook informed that it had updated its privacy policies including steps like not allowing apps using API to access the guest list or posts on the event wall. The lawsuit opened a can of worms wherein several other cases of Facebook sharing private data of user without consent came into light. According to The Verge, the $725 million settlement amount is the largest ever achieved in a US data privacy lawsuit.