$725 Million Facebook User Data Privacy Class Action Settlement

$725 Million Facebook User Data Privacy Class Action Settlement

Meta Privacy Class Action Settlement

Pixabay | Updated: October 21, 2024

Estimated Payout: $27

Proof required: No


What was the Facebook Data Privacy Settlement?

A $725 million class action lawsuit has been settled with Facebook, re-branded to Meta Platforms, Inc. As of April 2023, many users are reporting receiving a notification when logging in their Facebook accounts notifying them about the new Facebook privacy class action settlement and are wondering if it is real. In this article we'll discuss how Facebook users can qualify to earn cash in the $725,000,000 settlement. Millions of Facebook users have been receiving the following notification directly from Meta and Facebook about the 2023 data privacy class action, and yes, the notification is legitimate:



The Meta Platforms class action lawsuit revolved around allegations that Facebook (Meta Platforms, Inc.) shared troves of user data with third parties without getting appropriate permissions from Facebook users. Additionally, the class action attorneys in the lawsuit made arguments that Facebook did not properly monitor third party use of Facebook user data. There were several lawsuit combined into one umbrella class action. The original lawsuits over this Facebook data infringement of privacy rights was consolidated into a large $725,000,000 class action settlement, under one umbrella as a single case: Facebook, Inc. Consumer privacy User Profile Litigation. These numerous lawsuits brought to the Court's attention that Facebook was sharing user data with third parties. Some of the listed third parties included:

• Third-Party App Developers,
• Facebook or Meta Business Partners,
• Meta Advertisers,
• Data Brokers,
• Whitelisted Parties

The Meta settlement is the single largest data privacy class action in U.S. history, with the aim of resolving investigations and lawsuits stemming from the 2016 election scandal over Facebook's sharing of over 87 million users' data with a third-party called Cambridge Analytica. Cambridge Analytica was revealed to be connected with Donald Trump's 2016 Presidential campaign. According to class action attorneys in the Facebook case, Cambridge Analytica used user data without their permission in order to harvest and profile voters to target and influence the 2016 presidential election in Donald Trump's favor. In effect, Facebook's third-party data harvesting on behalf of a political consultancy is at the center of the investigations and class action lawsuits into Facebook's conduct when it comes to user data governance. Cambridge Analytica has been shuttered since the scandal broke.

Meta Platforms, Inc. has chosen to settle the $725 Million user data privacy class action, but in doing so has not accepted any liability for its actions or admitted to any wrongdoing. The Court has also not made any judgment or decision as to the righteousness of Facebook's actions with user data and its sharing of private user data with numerous third parties. Facebook expressed that the settlement is in the best interest of Meta's community, as well as its shareholders of its nearly $600 Billion evaluation stock price as of April 2023.

A History of Facebook Class Action Settlements

In addition to the $725 data privacy class action settlement, Facebook has agreed to pay a $5 Billion fine to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission of the United States), a $100 Million settlement with the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), and may be facing future lawsuits and settlements related to data privacy since the $725M Meta Settlement does not cover United Kingdom Facebook users. Facebook also has a long history of separate class action settlements related to user privacy violations. Two of the most massive and recent Facebook settlements were:

• $90 Million Facebook User Track Class Action - Facebook agreed to pay $90,000,000 to Facebook users whose data was allegedly tracked and improperly collected when visiting websites other than Facebook.com. The settled class action lawsuit alleges that Facebook obtained and collected data from Facebook users in the United States who visited non-Facebook websites that displayed the Facebook Like button. Those external sites allowed Facebook to collect data from Facebook users even while they were not on Facebook.com without user consent.

• $650 Million Facebook Privacy Settlement - In a landmark class action settlement, Facebook agreed to fund $650,000,000 for a class action fund to be distributed to qualifying Facebook users. Facebook ended up paying $397 to hundreds of thousands of Facebook users whose privacy rights may have been violated by Facebook's parent company, Meta Platforms, Inc. The settlement fund was agreed upon as the result of a class action lawsuit against Facebook (Meta Platforms) for violating Illinois Privacy laws - this law is called BIPA, or the Biometric Information Protection Act.

How do I qualify for the Meta Class Action?

You may qualify for compensation from the Meta data privacy class action if you were a United States Facebook user during the following time: May 24, 2007 through December 22, 2022.

How much will I get paid for the Meta class action?

The longer you were a Facebook user, the more you can expect to be paid. The Facebook class action fund will pay out $725,000,000 after administrative costs such as court fees and lawyer compensation. Once the Court, as well as counsel are paid, the remaining Facebook settlement funds are referred to as the net settlement fund remaining. This remaining fund will be distributed proportionally among the class action claimants that filed valid and timely claim forms (see link below). The amount you get paid will also be determined by how long you were a Facebook user during the qualifying period, which is from May 24, 2007 through December 22, 2022.

Do I Need Proof to File a Settlement Claim?

No, the Facebook / Meta Class Action Settlement does not require proof of purchase for a valid claim. If you have a Facebook account you will need to provide information such as the Facebook email associated with the account, as well as the phone number and/or the username. However, if you have deleted your Facebook account, you can provide the dates for which your account was active without any additional proof.

Where can I file make a Facebook settlement claim form?

In order to apply to get paid your share in the Facebook privacy class action, you must follow the link at the bottom of this page and fill out a timely claim form by August 25, 2023 at 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time. The claim form will ask for your Facebook details such as your username, email, and/or phone number that you use to log in to your Facebook account.

Can I still get paid if I deleted my Facebook account?

If you deleted your Facebook account you can still apply for and get paid in the $725 Million Facebook Settlement. You will need to provide details about your qualified Facebook account, just as you would if you did not delete your account.

How Do I Find Class Action Settlements?

Find all the latest class actions you can qualify for by getting notified of new lawsuits as soon as they are open to claims:

Filing Class Action Settlement Claims

Please note that your claim form will be rejected if you submit a settlement claim for payout with any fraudulent information. By providing this information and your sworn statement of its veracity, you agree to do so under the penalty of perjury. You would also be harming others that actually qualify for the class action settlement. If you are not sure whether or not you qualify for this class action settlement, visit the class action administrator's website below. OpenClassActions.com is only providing information and is not a class action administrator or a law firm. OpenClassActions is a participant in the Amazon affiliate advertising program and this post may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission or fees if you make a purchase via those links.

Claim Form Website: Facebook Settlement Website


Submit Claim Here


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