Prince Harry and Meghan condemn Meta for using 'data-extraction business model' on children and accuse it of using £13billion lawsuit settlement to avoid 'accountability'

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have criticised Meta's 'data-extraction business model' after the firm agreed to pay up to £13billion to settle a child harm lawsuit.The Duke and Duchess of Sussex condemned the Facebook and Instagram owner in a statement today for having used this model 'on our children and all users for years'.The couple, who returned to the UK yesterday after six years in the US, said Meta had 'paid to avoid yet another trial outcome that would force it into accountability', adding the company has 'more than the means to pay this settlement' given estimates it will make the equivalent money back in profits within 30 days.Meta has agreed the payout as part of a settlement ending a legal battle in the US, where it will also introduce major new protections for teenage users, to resolve claims that Facebook and Instagram harmed children.Harry and Meghan, who have become vociferous online safety campaigners in recent years, hailed this as a 'positive step for everyone advocating for safer online spaces'.They said the result shows Meta and social media companies 'understand they are up against an immovable force of parents, survivors, and advocates who will not back down until we see change in how our young people interact with online spaces'.The Sussexes concluded by stating: 'We celebrate with the parent and youth partners, legal and policy experts, and allies everywhere fighting for accountability.Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at a David Foster Foundation event in Canada on August 7 Lawyers from the California attorney general's office outside a court in Oakland yesterday after Meta agreed to pay up to £13billion as part of a settlement ending a legal battle in the US 'As always, we stand with them as they seek justice going forward, ensuring child online safety is built into any online space where our young people spend time.'The Meta agreement resolves claims filed by 47 US states accusing the tech giant of designing Instagram with features that are addictive to children and teenagers and can harm their mental health. Harry and Meghan's full statement after Meta lawsuit settlement 'Meta To Pay Billions In Child Endangerment Settlement, Issues No Apology'Aug. 2026The historic trial against Meta over claims that its products endanger children has resulted in a settlement in which they will pay up to $17.1 billion. The settlement requires Meta to pay financial penalties for violating federal child privacy and states' consumer protection laws.By choosing to settle, the company paid to avoid yet another trial outcome that would force it into accountability. Because of the data-extraction business model Meta has used on our children and all users for years, it has more than the means to pay this settlement. Reports estimate Meta will make the equivalent of the $17 billion payout back in profit in the next 30 days.Alongside the settlement, Meta announced it will be making significant product changes for teens, including restricting platform use between 12 am and 6 am, stopping notifications during school hours, an optional chronological feed (as opposed to one based on algorithmically recommended interest-based content), and banning features that negatively impact mental health like beauty filters. Restricting teens' time on the platforms, if successfully enforced, would hit the company's business model, which relies on users spending as much time on the app as possible to see ads and generate data for advertisers.Meta's statement about these changes suggests it worked with 52 state attorneys to reach these product decisions, showing how unanimous the desire for change is across the United States. Their statement also emphasizes empowering parents with additional controls, which will need to be tested for effectiveness given Meta's history of placing responsibility for safety solely on parents.The statement fails to apologize or mention the billions it will pay out because of claims brought by the 29-state coalition and the 47 states plus the District of Columbia and territories included in the settlement. Their statement calls on YouTube and TikTok to join them in making similar design changes, and this agreement may also affect similar claims against other social media giants like Snap, YouTube, and TikTok.We hope it quickly sparks change from other tech leaders across the industry.This result clearly signals that Meta and social media companies understand they are up against an immovable force of parents, survivors, and advocates who will not back down until we see change in how our young people interact with online spaces. It is a positive step for everyone advocating for safer online spaces and at the same time – far from the end of the journey to a better online world.We celebrate with the parent and youth partners, legal and policy experts, and allies everywhere fighting for accountability. As always, we stand with them as they seek justice going forward, ensuring child online safety is built into any online space where our young people spend time. It brings an end to a trial that kicked off last week in California and that had been expected to see chief executive Mark Zuckerberg give evidence before a jury in federal court.The settlement is viewed as one of the largest in state consumer protection history in the US.Meta unveiled a set of new protections and controls that will automatically apply to under-18s on Instagram and Facebook, subject to court approval and only for participating US states.This includes a default night-time block, between midnight and 6am, muting notifications during school hours, hiding the number of likes and reactions on posts by default, and blocking teens from using extreme makeup filters.Meta has also committed to strengthening tools to prevent under-age accounts being created and protecting teenagers from harmful content.These new measures will not apply to users worldwide, including the UK.The total settlement will be made in instalments over ten years to the US states involved.But Meta called on rival social media platforms TikTok and YouTube to make similar changes to restrict teenage usage.It warned that 30 per cent of the settlement, amounting to about £4billion, would only be paid if YouTube and TikTok agreed to pay the same sum, and if they implement one-hour daily limits, night mode and age-assurance measures.Meta's chief legal officer CJ Mahoney said its new protections for teenagers 'will only work if all our peers join us'.'Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution,' he said. 'As a parent, I'm proud of both the work Meta has done to protect kids historically, and of this new ground-breaking agreement.'But its success depends on all other social media platforms following Meta's lead.'The Tories said the settlement showed social media companies 'have turned a blind eye to the damage being done'.Shadow education secretary Laura Trott added: 'Social media companies can no longer be allowed to freely harm our children.'They should not have unfettered access to children until they can prove their platforms are safe. Today's settlement shows that they are not.'She has urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham to 'get on with' a social media ban for under-16s, which is set to come into force next year, adding: 'Every further delay leaves more children exposed.'The Molly Rose Foundation – which was set up in memory of 14-year-old Molly from Harrow, London, who took her own life in 2017 after viewing harmful content – said the settlement 'demonstrates that big tech can and should be held to account'.Yesterday Harry and Meghan returned to Britain with their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet after six years in the US.They landed at Birmingham Airport around noon after flying on a private plane from California to start their new life.It is thought they travelled with the children on a Bombardier Global Express XRS luxury long-range business jet from Van Nuys Airport, Los Angeles. Lawyers speak with US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in court in Oakland yesterdayThe family are understood to have been given no police protection for their arrival, amid questions over whether taxpayers will foot the bill for their security.They are now setting up their home in the UK but plan to live as an 'international' family, keeping their properties in California and Portugal.The announcement that they were returning to Britain came as a shock after they quit the working monarchy in 2020 and bought a house in Montecito.Harry, 41, and Meghan, 45, will live in a non-royal residence outside London. Their children have both been enrolled in UK schools in or around the Cotswolds and are ready to start next week.It comes a month after the couple took Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, to see their grandfather the King for the first time in four years at his Highgrove home.The rest of the Royal Family is at Balmoral for their summer break.