On April 24, 2020, the District Court for the District of Columbia approved a settlement between Facebook, Inc. and the Federal Trade Commission that imposed a $5 billion penalty and imposed injunctive relief on Facebook’s activities related to its collection, use, and disclosure of users’ personal information. This settlement traces its origins to a previous settlement agreed to by the parties in 2012. In a 2019 complaint, the FTC alleged that certain Facebook privacy-related activities – including its transparency and consumer-facing disclosures – were insufficient to comply with the 2012 settlement and violated relevant provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act. The new settlement, now approved by the court, resolves the 2019 allegations.
FTC press release | Memorandum Opinion | Consent Motion