Meta Settles for $18B to Verify User Ages Amid COPPA Legal Hurdles

Meta agrees to an $18 billion settlement to improve age verification on its platforms while navigating strict US privacy laws.

TruthFoundry News Desk

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As of 2026-09-02 13:36 UTC. Market figures are as the cited sources reported them at that time and may have moved since. This is news, not investment advice.

Meta Platforms agreed to an $18 billion legal settlement with US states to resolve claims that it designed social media platforms to addict children. ^[1] The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 22 US states filed a lawsuit against Amazon alleging that the company manipulated advertising prices since 2019. ^[2] Meta must take extra steps for children below age 13, including searching the friend networks of the accounts of the youngest users to identify and eliminate them. ^[3] The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) restricts companies from collecting personal data from children under 13 without parental consent, complicating effective age verification. ^[4] The settlement does not require Meta to take strict verification steps such as checking photo IDs or asking users to upload video selfies. ^[5] Amazon has denied the accusations, stating that its pricing practices are transparent and compliant with laws. ^[6] Regulators allege that Amazon secretly manipulated the prices advertisers pay to display ads on its platform. ^[7] The lawsuit claims that this manipulation has resulted in advertisers paying approximately $20 billion more than they should have since 2019. ^[8]

What this stands on

Meta Platforms agreed to an $18 billion legal settlement with US states to resolve claims that it designed social media platforms to addict children. · RAPPLER

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 22 US states filed a lawsuit against Amazon alleging that the company manipulated advertising prices since 2019. · Berlingske

Meta must take extra steps for children below age 13, including searching the friend networks of the accounts of the youngest users to identify and eliminate them. · RAPPLER

The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) restricts companies from collecting personal data from children under 13 without parental consent, complicating effective age verification. · RAPPLER

The settlement does not require Meta to take strict verification steps such as checking photo IDs or asking users to upload video selfies. · RAPPLER

Amazon has denied the accusations, stating that its pricing practices are transparent and compliant with laws. · Berlingske

Regulators allege that Amazon secretly manipulated the prices advertisers pay to display ads on its platform. · Berlingske

The lawsuit claims that this manipulation has resulted in advertisers paying approximately $20 billion more than they should have since 2019. · Berlingske

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