Meta has agreed to a massive $18 billion settlement with 29 U.S. states, committing to implement sweeping safety restrictions for minors on Instagram and Facebook. The new framework introduces a mandatory two-hour daily time limit for teenagers, automated notification mutes during school hours, and a strict ‘Night Mode’ that blocks platform access between midnight and 6 a.m.
Additionally, parents will be able to default teens to a non-algorithmic chronological feed, like counts will be hidden by default, and extreme makeup filters will be restricted. These protections are mandated to remain in place for a decade, while a significant portion of the financial settlement is tied to whether rival platforms like TikTok and YouTube adopt matching industry standards.
- $18 billion settlement reached with 29 U.S. states over teen safety.
- Mandatory two-hour daily usage limit for users under 18 across apps.
- Default Night Mode blocking access from midnight to 6 a.m.
- School-hour notification blocks and default hidden like counts.
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