In re: Facebook, Inc. Consumer Privacy User Profile Litigation

A federal court authorized this Notice because you have a right to know about the proposed Settlement of this class action lawsuit and about all of your options before the Court decides whether to grant final approval of the Settlement. This Notice explains the lawsuit, your legal rights, what benefits are available, and who can receive them.

For information on how to determine if you are a Settlement Class Member, and therefore eligible for benefits under this settlement, see Question 5.

Numerous lawsuits were brought on behalf of Facebook users who allege that Facebook (now Meta Platforms, Inc.) shared or otherwise made accessible to third parties (including but not limited to third-party app developers, “whitelisted” parties, business partners, advertisers, and data brokers) user data and data about users’ friends without permission of the users whose data was shared, and did not sufficiently monitor and enforce third-party access or use of that data. The Honorable Vince Chhabria of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California was appointed to oversee these lawsuits, which have been consolidated as In re: Facebook, Inc. Consumer Privacy User Profile Litigation, Case No. 3:18-md-02843-VC (N.D. Cal.). The people that filed this lawsuit are called the “Plaintiffs” and the company they sued, Facebook, Inc. (now Meta Platforms, Inc.) is called the “Defendant.” Settlement Class Members include all Facebook users in the United States between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022, inclusive. Meta expressly denies any liability or wrongdoing.

In a class action, one or more individuals sue on behalf of other people with similar claims. These individuals are known as “class representatives.” Together, the people included in the class action are called a “class” or “class members.” One court resolves the lawsuit for all class members, except for those who opt out from a settlement. In this Settlement, the Settlement Class Representatives are Plaintiffs Steven Akins, Jason Ariciu, Anthony Bell, Bridgett Burk, Terry Fischer, Tyler King, Jordan O’Hara, and Cheryl Senko.

The Court did not decide in favor of Plaintiffs or Defendant. Defendant denies all claims and that it violated any law. Plaintiffs and Defendant agreed to a Settlement to avoid the costs and risks of a trial, and to allow the Settlement Class Members to receive payments from the Settlement. The Settlement Class Representatives and their attorneys think the Settlement is best for all Settlement Class Members.

The Settlement Class includes all Facebook users in the United States between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022, inclusive (the “Class Period”).

Yes. The Settlement Class does not include: (i) all persons who are directors, officers, legal representatives, alleged co-conspirators, and agents of Defendant or its wholly or partly owned subsidiaries or affiliated companies or employees of Defendant or its subsidiaries and affiliated companies; (ii) counsel for any plaintiff whose case was consolidated into this MDL and their employees, including but not limited to Class Counsel for Plaintiffs and their employees; (iii) the Special Master, Discovery Mediators, and Settlement Mediator who participated in this case and their staff; and the Judges and Court staff, as well as any appellate court to which this matter is ever assigned; and (iv) eligible persons who elect to opt out of the Settlement Class.

Meta will establish a Settlement Fund of seven hundred twenty-five million dollars ($725,000,000.00) to pay all valid claims submitted by the Settlement Class Members, as well as notice and administration expenses, any attorneys’ fees and costs, and any Service Awards for the Settlement Class Representatives.

The answer depends on how many Settlement Class Members submit valid claims and how long you were a user on Facebook during the Class Period.

First, the total amount distributed will be the Settlement Fund minus the Administrative Costs, any amount awarded by the Court as fees and costs to Class Counsel, and any Service Awards to the Settlement Class Representatives. The resulting amount is called the “Net Settlement Fund.” The Net Settlement Fund is the amount of money available to be distributed to Settlement Class Members.

Next, the Net Settlement Fund will be allocated to Settlement Class Members who submit valid claims, also called “Authorized Claimants.” The Settlement Administrator will assign each Authorized Claimant one point for each month in which the Authorized Claimant had an activated Facebook account during the Class Period.

Now that the deadline for submitting a claim has expired (see Question 11 below), the Settlement Administrator will add up all the points assigned to all the Authorized Claimants and divide the Net Settlement Amount by that number. The result will be the amount of the Net Settlement Fund available for each point. Each Authorized Claimant will receive that per-point amount multiplied by the number of points they were assigned.

Unless you exclude yourself from the Settlement, you cannot sue, continue to sue, or be part of any other lawsuit against the Defendant about any of the legal claims this Settlement resolves or the factual allegations on which this case is based. The “Released Claims” section in the Settlement Agreement describes the legal claims that you give up (“release”) if you remain in the Settlement Class.

The deadline to file a claim expired on August 25, 2023.

The deadline to file a claim expired on August 25, 2023.

The Court granted final approval of the Settlement on October 10, 2023. Settlement Payments will be distributed as soon as possible. It is always uncertain whether appeals will be filed and, if so, how long it will take to resolve them. If any appeals are filed, distribution will not take palce until they are resolved. Updated regarding any appeals and payment distribution timelines will be posted on the Settlement Website when they are available.

The deadline to file a claim expired on August 25, 2023.

If you need to update your claim, go to the Settlement Website, click on “Submit Claim” and click the link located at the top of the claim portal to edit your claim.  You will need the confirmation code and claim ID provided in the confirmation email  you received after filing your claim to access and update your claim. 

If you submitted your claim by mail or email, you may update your claim by emailing info@usersettlement.com or sending mail to the following address. Please include your name and contact information so that the Settlement Administrator can locate your claim.

Facebook Consumer Privacy User Profile Litigation
c/o Settlement Administrator 
1650 Arch Street, Suite 2210
Philadelphia, PA 19103
 

Your public username for your profile is the same as your timeline address, and appears where “[username]” is in the following example:  https://www.facebook.com/[username]. You can also find it in the following places:

• On Facebook’s Website:

Navigate to: “Account” > “Settings and Privacy” > “Settings” > “Username”

• On Facebook’s Mobile Application:

Navigate to: “Menu” > Select your display name at the top of the screen > Select the “…” next to “Edit Profile” > Username appears under “Your profile link” as: https://www.facebook.com/[username]

• If your account settings have moved to the Meta Accounts Center (for website):

Navigate to: “Account” > “Settings and Privacy” > “Settings” > “See more in Accounts Center” > “Profiles” > Select your Facebook profile > “Username”

• If your account settings have moved to the Meta Accounts Center (for mobile application):

Navigate to: “Menu” > “Settings & Privacy” > “Settings” > “See more in Accounts Center” > “Profiles” > Select your Facebook profile > “Username”

If you are unable to locate your username, please see FAQ 16.

There are some Facebook users who do not have usernames.  If you have followed the instructions in FAQ 15 and have verified that you have no username, please provide the email and/or phone number associated with your account.  You can find the email and/or phone number associated with your account in the following places:

• On Facebook’s Website:

Navigate to: Your Profile (Click on the icon of your profile photo) > “About” > “Contact and basic info” 

• On Facebook’s Mobile Application:

Navigate to: “Menu” > Select your display name at the top of the screen > “See your About info” > Scroll down to “Contact info” 

• If your account settings have moved to the Meta Accounts Center (for website):

Navigate to: “Account” > “Settings and Privacy” > “Settings” > “See more in Accounts Center” > “Personal Details” > “Contact Info”

• If your account settings have moved to the Meta Accounts Center (for mobile application):

Navigate to: “Menu” > “Settings & Privacy” > “Settings” > “See more in Accounts Center” > “Personal Details” > “Contact Info”

Yes. The Court has appointed Derek W. Loeser of Keller Rohrback L.L.P. and Lesley E. Weaver of Bleichmar Fonti & Auld LLP to represent the Settlement Class as Class Counsel. You will not be charged for their services.

Derek W. Loeser
Keller Rohrback L.L.P.
1201 Third Ave., Suite 3200
Seattle, WA 98101

Lesley E. Weaver
Bleichmar Fonti & Auld LLP
555 12th Street, Suite 1600
Oakland, CA 94607

You do not need to hire your own lawyer because Class Counsel works for you. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

The Court-approved  fees, expenses and Service Awards will be paid from the Settlement Fund. The Court’s approval order, “Order Awarding Attorneys’ Fees,” is available on the Important Documents page.

The deadline to opt-out of the Settlement expired on July 26, 2023.

The deadline to object to the Settlement expired on July 26, 2023.

Objecting is telling the Court that you do not like something about the Settlement. You can object to the Settlement only if you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement. Excluding yourself from the Settlement is opting out and stating to the Court that you do not want to be part of the Settlement. If you opt out of the Settlement, you cannot object to it because the Settlement no longer affects you.

Both the deadline to object and the deadline to opt-out of the Settlement expired on July, 26, 2023.

The Final Approval Hearing occurred at 1 p.m. PDT on September 7, 2023.  

The Final Approval Hearing occurred at 1 p.m. PDT on September 7, 2023 and you did not have to attend the Final Approval Hearing.

If you are a Settlement Class Member and you do nothing, you have given up the rights explained in Question 9, including your right to start a lawsuit, continue a lawsuit, or be part of any other lawsuit against the Defendant and the Released Parties about the legal issues or factual allegations resolved by this Settlement. In addition, you will not receive a payment from this Settlement.

The Notice summarizes the proposed Settlement. Complete details are provided in the Settlement Agreement. The Settlement Agreement and other related documents are available at the "Important Documents" page on this website.

If you have additional questions, you may contact the Settlement Administrator by email, phone, or mail:

Email: info@usersettlement.com

Toll-Free: 1-855-556-2233

Mail: Facebook Consumer Privacy User Profile Litigation, c/o Settlement Administrator, 1650 Arch Street, Suite 2210, Philadelphia, PA 19103

Publicly filed documents can also be obtained by:

• accessing the Court docket in this case, for a fee, through the Court’s Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system at https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov;
• reviewing the Court’s online docket: https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/judges/chhabria-vince-vc/in-re-facebook-inc-consumer-privacy-user-profile-litigation/; or
• visiting the office of the Clerk of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California at: Office of the Clerk, United States District Court, 450 Golden Gate Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94102-3489 between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Court holidays.

Please do not telephone the Court, the Clerk’s Office, or Meta to inquire about the Settlement or the Claims Process.

If you received a notice stating that your claim was no longer denied, our records indicated that you were previously sent a denial notice and were requested to submit an appeal. After further review it was determined that your claim is valid and that no appeal is required. No further action is required from you at this time. Distribution of Settlement payments will occur once all appeals are resolved.

If you received a notice requesting the estimated date your created your claimed Facebook Account, we were unable to determine this infromation from the available data. Your Facebook Account creation date is used to determine your settlement payment amount.