Here's how to get in on the action.

Done Goofed

Facebook is sending eligibile users money in a class action lawsuit settlement — and if you used the site basically at any point in the last 15 years, you can get in on the acti0n too.

The FAQ for the settlement specifies that the company now known as Meta notes that "all Facebook users in the United States between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022" are eligible to take part in the class action settlement because, even though the company denies any wrongdoing, a judge has ordered it to pay out settlements to all its users over alleged privacy and user data sharing complaints.

As Mashable and other news outlets helpfully filled in, there's a lot of context behind this sweeping settlement that first began with 2018's Cambridge Analytica scandal but has extended far beyond it.

In essence, Facebook — or ugh, fine, Meta — is basically being forced to pay anyone who used the site over that huge time period and files a claim because it's faced so, so many lawsuits about its alleged sharing of private user data with third parties.

Money Talks

As SF Gate notes, the $725 million class action settlement was approved by a judge at the end of March and will be disbursed based firstly on how many people submit claims and secondly on how many months each individual claimant used the site between May 2007 and December 2022.

Translation: if you were an early Facebook adopter, you could get a check that's better than a kick in the pants, though again this is all contingent upon how many people file claims and will only be drawn up after the lawyers take a 25 percent fee, which will no doubt be a pretty penny for them.

The deadline to submit a claim is August 25 and a hearing about it is scheduled for early September, so if you do choose to file a claim, don't expect to see that money anytime soon.

Nevertheless, it's a super-exciting prospect — and even if any of us only end up getting teeny tiny checks, it's a cool way to be a part of a historic settlement.

More on Facebook: It Sounds Like Facebook Is Completely Falling Apart


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