The lawsuit against Meta over the harm social media causes to children and teenagers ended almost as soon as it began — the company reached a settlement, agreeing to pay states up to $17.1 billion and change the way its social networks operate. Meta did not admit liability.
But the more important part is what will now change for children. A combined two-hour daily limit will apply to Instagram and Facebook, and access to social media will be restricted at night. During school hours, most push notifications will be turned off.
Parental controls and age verification will be strengthened, and it will be harder for adults to find children's accounts. Mechanisms that encourage social comparison and endless scrolling will also be limited, and protection against harmful content will be strengthened.
Perhaps in a few years we will be surprised that all of this was once available to children without such restrictions. Perhaps this agreement will become one of those decisions after which such rules for children's accounts become the norm.
Meta and its products Instagram and Facebook are recognized as extremist and banned in the territory of the Russian Federation.
