Meta agrees to settlement with 47 states in lawsuits
Texas has secured a historic settlement worth over $1 billion from Meta Platforms Inc., requiring the social media giant to implement sweeping new safety features for young users on Facebook and Instagram, state officials announced Wednesday. FOX 26’s Mekenna Earnhart has more.
HOUSTON – Texas has secured a historic settlement worth over $1 billion from Meta Platforms Inc., requiring the social media giant to implement sweeping new safety features for young users on Facebook and Instagram, state officials announced Wednesday.
What we know:
“This is a historic settlement and a major win for the safety of Texas children,” Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement. “Not only will Meta pay over $1 billion to Texas, but the company will also implement significant new safety features to better protect children’s precious minds and well-being on its platforms.”
“It is my mission to fundamentally change and strengthen the standards for child safety online, and this settlement is a major step forward in the fight to ensure our kids are protected online,” Paxton said.
Why you should care:
- Screen-time limits: A default daily limit of two hours for teenage users.
- Notification silences: Disabling push notifications by default during school hours and restricting them through a designated nighttime access mode.
- Social comparison controls: Hiding public “likes” and reactions on posts by default.
- Age verification: Enforcing stricter age-assurance measures while continuing to limit age-inappropriate content.
Company’s commitment to empowering parents
In an official statement responding to the agreement, Meta Chief Legal Officer C.J. Mahoney highlighted the company’s commitment to empowering parents through the new features, while pressing competing platforms to take identical action.
Kevin Martin, Head of Global Policy for Meta, also praised state leadership: “We want to thank Attorney General Ken Paxton for his leadership in protecting Texas teens and making this standard possible.”
Scrolling addiction vs physical safety risks
Rania Mankarious, CEO of Crime Stoppers of Houston, explained that parents must distinguish between scrolling addiction and physical safety risks.
Mankarious noted that Crime Stoppers of Houston will continue its work independent of federal court approvals or legislative action.
Mankarious stressed that protecting young users cannot rely solely on platform algorithms or young brains resisting design engineering.
Looking ahead to state policy efforts, Mankarious urged parents to stay engaged, pointing to an upcoming Sept. 15 special legislative hearing in Texas regarding social media grievances.
The Meta deal marks Paxton’s third major technology settlement exceeding $1 billion, following a $1.4 billion facial recognition settlement with Meta and a $1.375 billion privacy settlement with Google. Paxton’s office is also scheduled to go to trial against TikTok in fall 2026 as part of its ongoing online child safety litigation.
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