Meta has reached an approximately $18 billion agreement with a bipartisan group of US attorneys general to introduce major restrictions on how teenagers use Instagram and Facebook. Pending judicial approval, the agreement will automatically apply a range of protections to users under 18 in participating US states and territories.
Strict Screen Time and Nighttime Restrictions
Under the agreement, teenagers will face a default two-hour daily limit across Instagram and Facebook, which cannot be disabled without parental permission. A new Night Mode will block access between midnight and 6 AM, while School Mode will mute push notifications between 8 AM and 3 PM.
Our new Time Limit commitments, Night Mode features and usage limits during school hours set the right path forward for our whole industry, but this framework will only work if all our peers join us, stated Meta Chief Legal Officer C.J. Mahoney.
The settlement also includes hiding likes and reaction counts by default, blocking cosmetic surgery filters, and implementing stricter age-verification technologies to protect younger users across the platforms.
