U.S. Facebook Users With Active Accounts Between 2007 and 2022 Can Claim Share of Historic $725 Million Settlement

After Facebook’s parent company Meta agreed to pay $725 million to settle its high-profile privacy lawsuit last year, users with active accounts between select dates can now claim their share.

A website has been launched to help users with active accounts between May 2007 and December 2022 enter a claim to receive their share of the settlement. Individual payment amounts have yet to be established because it’s dependent on how many users submit claims and how long their respective accounts were active, but the users will have until August 25 to enter their claim.

To make a claim via the Facebook User Privacy Settlement website, users will need to provide their name, address, email address, and status as a U.S. citizen between the active dates. 

In December 2022, Meta agreed to pay $725 million to settle the class action lawsuit, which was filed against the company after it disclosed that it shared the information of 87 million users to consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica without consent. The firm was linked to Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign and was allegedly granted access to the information, which Facebook failed to “adequately monitor.” According to law firm Keller Rohrback, which represented the plaintiffs, the settlement is the “largest recovery ever achieved in a data privacy class action and the most Facebook has ever paid to resolve a private class action.”

The breach of user privacy resulted in a longwinded lawsuit, and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg testifying before Congress. He apologized for the mishandling of user data and promised to make sure it never happens again. Upon reaching a settlement last year, Meta did not admit to mishandling user data. 

“We pursued a settlement as it’s in the best interest of our community and shareholders,” said the company.