Millions of Facebook users who received money from the platform’s massive privacy settlement are set to receive another payment after a federal court in California approved a second distribution of unclaimed funds.
The new payments come from a $725 million class action settlement involving Facebook. The lawsuit accused Facebook of sharing users’ personal information with third parties without their permission. The case included allegations related to the Cambridge Analytica data scandal and raised concerns about how Facebook handled user data. Facebook agreed to the settlement but denied any wrongdoing.
According to court documents and reports by The Hill, a US District Court in California approved a second round of payments after a significant amount of settlement money remained unclaimed following the first distribution. Eligible recipients will begin receiving notifications ahead of payments that are scheduled to start on June 9.
The settlement administrator said payments will go out in batches over a four-week period. Recipients can expect to receive a notice three to four days before their money arrives.
The first round of settlement payments went out in September 2025. The settlement covered Facebook users in the United States who maintained an account between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022, and filed a valid claim before the deadline.
Although an estimated 250 million people qualified to participate in the settlement, only about 19 million claims were submitted and approved, reported The Hill citing court records.
Before payments reached claimants, attorneys’ fees, court-approved expenses and administrative costs reduced the total settlement fund. As a result, approximately $556 million remained available for distribution among eligible class members, reported The Hill.
Why is Facebook sending a second payment?
The second distribution became necessary because many people did not claim or redeem their original payments.
Court filings show that more than 200,000 paper checks remained uncashed after the first round. In addition, about 3 million digital payments expired before recipients used them.
Those unclaimed funds added up to nearly $100 million. Rather than returning the money elsewhere, the court approved a redistribution to people who successfully received and redeemed their original payments.
An estimated 15.7 million claimants qualify for the second payment. Individuals do not need to file a new claim or take additional action. The settlement administrator will automatically send payments using the same method selected during the original claims process.
Recipients may receive money through direct deposit, PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, prepaid debit cards or paper checks, depending on the option they originally chose.
How much money will people receive?
The second payments will be smaller than the first distribution because the available fund is much lower.
During the first round, payment amounts varied based on how long a claimant maintained a Facebook account during the covered period. The minimum payment was $4.89, while the maximum payment reached $38.37. The median payment totaled $32.45, reported The Hill.
For the second distribution, court documents show the minimum payment will be $4.67 and the maximum payment will be $7.32. The average payment is expected to be around $6 per person.
The lawsuit accused Facebook of allowing third parties to access user data without proper consent. The claims focused heavily on the Cambridge Analytica controversy, in which data from millions of Facebook users was obtained and used for political profiling. Facebook denied wrongdoing but agreed to the settlement to resolve the litigation.
People who are unsure about their eligibility, payment status or delivery method can contact the settlement administrator through the official Facebook User Privacy Settlement website. Individuals who need a replacement check can also request assistance through the administrator.