Meta to Pay $725M in Historic Settlement in Cambridge Analytica Case

Meta Platforms agreed to pay $725 million to resolve the 2018 class-action lawsuit accusing the company of allowing Cambridge Analytica to access the personal data of 87 million Facebook subscribers without their consent, according to a court filing revealed on Thursday. The settlement is the biggest one on record in a US data privacy class action case and the largest-ever Meta has agreed to pay to resolve a class action lawsuit.

Meta Agrees to Pay a Record Amount to Settle a 2018 Class-Action Lawsuit

Meta Platforms has agreed to pay $725 million to settle the long-running class-action lawsuit claiming the Facebook owner allowed the British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica and other third parties to access the personal data of 87 million users, Reuters reported on Friday. The proposed arrangement was revealed in a court filing published on Thursday.

The move represents the biggest-ever settlement reached in a US data privacy class action, according to plaintiffs’ lawyers. It is also the largest payment that Meta has agreed to pay to settle a class action suit.

“This historic settlement will provide meaningful relief to the class in this complex and novel privacy case.”

– Derek Loeser and Lesley Weaver, lead lawyers for the plaintiffs.

However, Meta refused to admit any misconduct as part of the settlement, which is pending approval by a federal judge in San Francisco. The tech giant said it agreed to make the payment because it was “in the best interest of our community and shareholders.”

“Over the last three years we revamped our approach to privacy and implemented a comprehensive privacy program.”

– Meta Platforms said in a statement.

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Meta Granted a Trump-linked Firm Access to Personal Data 87M Users, Suit Claims

The reached settlement marks another important step for Meta toward resolving the class-action lawsuit filed by Facebook users in 2018. The suit accused Meta of providing Cambridge Analytica, a British research firm that worked for Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, with access to the personal data of as many as 87 million Facebook users.

Over the past four years, users’ lawyers have gained leverage to access Meta’s internal records and support their claims that Facebook failed to protect their private data. According to Bloomberg, Meta would have likely risked hundreds of millions of dollars if it had gone to trial.

Still, the settlement marks another blow for the company in 2022, which rebranded from Facebook to Meta last year to focus on the metaverse. The tech giant reduced its workforce by 13% in November to cut costs. Meta’s expenses rose to $22.1 billion in Q3 year-over-year, forcing the company to announce a hiring freeze in September.

What do you think about Meta refusing to admit wrongdoing in the new settlement? Let us know in the comments below.