Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, has reached a settlement to end an $8 billion shareholder lawsuit related to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Shareholder Lawsuit against Meta
Zuckerberg and other top executives at Meta agreed to settle a shareholder lawsuit regarding the mishandling of user data during the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Filed in Delaware Chancery Court, the lawsuit sought $8 billion in damages for allegedly failing to adhere to privacy commitments mandated by federal regulators.
Cambridge Analytica Scandal
In 2018, revelations surfaced that Cambridge Analytica harvested personal data from millions of Facebook users without consent and used it to assist Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. Public backlash was severe, resulting in Zuckerberg testifying before Congress multiple times and increasing scrutiny of Facebook's data policies.
Consequences and Meta's Actions
Meta did not admit wrongdoing in the FTC case but paid $5.1 million to settle claims. Since then, the company has faced criticism for not implementing sufficient improvements to its data privacy practices. The shareholder lawsuit in Delaware represents one of the most serious legal efforts to hold individual executives accountable for the fallout from the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
The settlement allows Meta to avoid further scrutiny of its ongoing privacy issues, which continue to resonate with investors.
