As per the lawsuit, Meta is alleged to have given access to several third parties to Facebook users’ content and information on the platform without their consent apart from failing to appropriately regulate the third parties' access to and use of the data
Meta to settle Cambridge Analytica scandal case with a payment of $725m. (Credit: Nokia621/Wikimedia Commons)
Facebook’s owner Meta Platforms has agreed to pay a compensation of $725m to settle a privacy class action arising from the Cambridge Analytica scandal in the US.
The lawsuit was brought by Facebook users in March 2018. This was after the news that the British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica had extracted data from up to 87 million Facebook users.
As per the lawsuit, Meta is alleged to have given access to several third parties to their Facebook content and information without their consent.
Besides, the plaintiffs stated that the social technology company failed to appropriately regulate the third parties’ access to and use of the data.
The plaintiffs, in this case, are represented by Derek Loeser of Keller Rohrback and Lesley Weaver of Bleichmar Fonti & Auld as co-lead counsel.
Loeser and Weaver stated: “This historic settlement will provide meaningful relief to the class in this complex and novel privacy case. We have reached this point only because our teams of lawyers and professionals have dedicated years of hard work to this case. We are also immensely thankful to the Court and the mediators.”
According to the lawyers for the plaintiffs, the proposed settlement is the largest one to ever be reached in a US privacy class action.
The motion seeking preliminary approval of the settlement is filed by plaintiffs following the parties’ notification to the court of a settlement in principle in August 2022 and months of additional negotiations.
As per various reports, the social technology company has not accepted any wrongdoing or liability as part of the proposed settlement.
Meta spokesperson has been quoted by various news agencies as saying: “We pursued a settlement as it’s 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 programme. We look forward to continuing to build services people love and trust with privacy at the forefront.”
The proposed settlement is subject to court approval following the review of the papers submitted in support of the settlement agreement. It is expected to have a hearing for the court to consider the settlement on 2 March 2023.
In February 2021, Facebook was hit by a similar class action in the UK over allegations that it did not protect the personal details of about a million people in England and Wales.