Mark Zuckerberg settles $8bn lawsuit over Facebook privacy claims
Zuckerberg and former Facebook directors including Marc Andreessen, the co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz, had been scheduled to appear in a Delaware court to defend their roles on the Facebook board when it was hit with a $5 billion fine in 2019 for alleged violations of an agreement with a US regulator to protect user privacy.
The case was also expected to feature testimony from former Facebook directors Peter Thiel, co-founder of Palantir Technologies, and Reed Hastings, co-founder of Netflix.
Shareholders of Meta Platforms had sought to hold Zuckerberg and former Facebook directors liable for more than $8 billion in fines and legal costs the company paid in recent years to resolve claims that it had violated a 2012 agreement with the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The defendants denied the claims.
However, on Thursday a lawyer for the shareholders told a Delaware judge that a settlement had been reached. The parties did not disclose details of the settlement.
Meta investors alleged in the lawsuit that former and current board members failed to oversee the company's compliance with the 2012 FTC agreement and claim that Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg, former chief operating officer, knowingly ran Facebook as an illegal data harvesting operation.
The case followed revelations that data from millions of Facebook users was accessed by Cambridge Analytica, a now-defunct London-based political consulting firm that worked for Donald Trump's successful US presidential campaign in 2016. Those revelations led to the FTC fine in 2019, which was a record at the time.
• Cambridge Analytica: How the scandal unfolded
The shareholders wanted the 11 defendants to use their personal wealth to reimburse the company. The defendants have denied the allegations, which they have called 'extreme claims'. Facebook changed its name to Meta in 2021. The company is not a defendant and declined to comment.
Jeffrey Zients, a former board member, testified on Wednesday that the company did not agree to the FTC fine to spare Zuckerberg legal liability, as shareholders alleged.
On its website, the company has said it has invested billions of dollars into protecting user privacy since 2019. Most publicly traded US companies are incorporated in Delaware, whose state budget relies on fees from chartering businesses.
Marc Andreessen and his wife Laura Arrillaga-Andreessen at a ceremony in California in April
TAYLOR HILL/FILMMAGIC
Last week, Andreessen Horowitz said it was changing its state of incorporation to Nevada from Delaware, citing the lack of certainty in Delaware courts. The company pointed to two rulings, including one last year to rescind Elon Musk's $56 billion pay package from Tesla.
After his pay package was rescinded, Musk led his companies to incorporate in Texas from Delaware and encouraged others to follow.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
29 minutes ago
- The Independent
A Tunisian musician was detained in LA after living in US for a decade. His doctor wife speaks out
Dr. Wafaa Alrashid noticed fewer of her patients were showing up for their appointments at the Los Angeles area hospital where she works as immigration raids spread fear among the Latino population she serves. The Utah-born chief medical officer at Huntington Hospital understood their fear on a personal level. Her husband Rami Othmane, a Tunisian singer and classical musician, began carrying a receipt of his pending green card application around with him. Over the past few months, immigration agents have arrested hundreds of people in Southern California, prompting protests against the federal raids and the subsequent deployment of the National Guard and Marines. Despite living in the U.S. for a decade as one of thousands of residents married to U.S. citizens, he was swept up in the crackdown. On July 13, Othmane was stopped while driving to a grocery store in Pasadena. He quickly pulled out his paperwork to show federal immigration agents. 'They didn't care, they said, 'Please step out of the car,'' Alrashid recalled hearing the officers say as she watched her husband's arrest in horror over FaceTime. Alrashid immediately jumped in her car and followed her phone to his location. She arrived just in time to see the outline of his head in the back of a vehicle driving away. 'That was probably the worst day of my life," she said. The Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration has ensnared not only immigrants without legal status but legal permanent residents like Othmane who has green cards. Some U.S. citizens have even been arrested. Meanwhile, many asylum-seekers who have regular check-in appointments are being arrested in the hallways outside courtrooms as the White House works toward its promise of mass deportations. Alrashid said her husband has been in the U.S. since 2015 and overstayed his visa, but his deportation order was dismissed in 2020. They wed in March 2025 and immediately filed for a green card. After his arrest, he was taken to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in downtown Los Angeles where he was held in a freezing cold room with 'no beds, no pillows, no blankets, no soap, no toothbrushes and toothpaste, and when you're in a room with people, the bathroom's open,' she said. The Department of Homeland Security in an emailed statement noted the expiration of his tourist visa but did not address the dismissal of the deportation order in 2020 nor his pending green card application. The agency denied any allegations of mistreatment, and said "ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.' Alrashid said for years her husband has performed classical Arabic music across Southern California. They first met when he was singing at a restaurant. 'He's the kindest person,' Alrashid said, adding that he gave a sweater she brought him to a fellow detainee and to give others privacy, he built a makeshift barrier around the open toilet using trash bags. 'He's brought a lot to the community, a lot of people love his music," she said. More than a week after his arrest, fellow musicians, immigration advocates and activists joined Alrashid in a rally outside the facility. A few of his colleagues performed classical Arabic music, drumming loud enough that they hoped the detainees inside could hear them. Los Jornaleros del Norte musicians, who often play Spanish-language music at rallies, also were there. 'In Latin American culture, the serenade — to bring music to people — is an act of love and kindness. But in this moment, bringing music to people who are in captivity is also an act of resistance," said Pablo Alvarado, co-executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. Leading up to the rally, Alrashid was worried because she hadn't received her daily call from her husband and was told she couldn't visit him that day at the detention facility. She finally heard from him that evening. Othmane told her over the phone he was now at an immigration detention facility in Arizona, and that his left leg was swollen. 'They should ultrasound your leg, don't take a risk,' she said. Alrashid hopes to get her husband out on bail while his case is being processed. They had a procedural hearing on Thursday where the judge verified his immigration status, and have a bail bond hearing scheduled for Tuesday. Until then, she'll continue waiting for his next phone call.
The Independent
29 minutes ago
- The Independent
DeSantis set a Florida record for executions. It's driving a national increase
In the final moments of a life defined by violence, 60-year-old Edward Zakrzewski thanked the people of Florida for killing him "in the most cold, calculated, clean, humane, efficient way possible," breathing deeply as a lethal drug cocktail coursed through his veins. With his last breath, strapped to a gurney inside a state prison's death chamber, Zakrzewski paid what Florida had deemed was his debt to society and became the 27th person put to death in the U.S. so far this year, the highest number in a decade. Under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida has executed nine people in 2025, more than than any other state, and set a new state record, with DeSantis overseeing more executions in a single year than any other Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Across the country, more people have been put to death in the first seven months of this year than in all of 2024. Florida's increase is helping put the U.S. on track to surpass 2015's total of 28 executions. And the number of executions is expected to keep climbing. Nine more people are scheduled to be put to death in seven states during the remainder of 2025. Florida drives a national increase in executions After the Supreme Court lifted its ban on capital punishment in the '70s, executions steadily increased, peaking in 1999 at 98 deaths. Since then, they had been dropping — in part due to legal battles, a shortage of lethal injection drugs, and declining public support for capital punishment, which has prompted a majority of states to either pause or abolish it altogether. The ratcheting up after this yearslong decline comes as Republican President Donald Trump has urged prosecutors to aggressively seek the death penalty and as some GOP-controlled state legislatures have pushed to expand the category of crimes punishable by death and the methods used to carry out executions. John Blume, director of the Cornell Death Penalty Project, says the uptick in executions doesn't appear to be linked to a change in public support for the death penalty or an increase in the rate of death sentences, but is rather a function of the discretion of state governors. 'The most cynical view would be: It seems to matter to the president, so it matters to them,' Blume said of the governors. 'The only appropriate punishment' In response to questions from The Associated Press, a spokesperson for DeSantis pointed to statements the governor made at a press conference in May, saying he takes capital cases 'very seriously.' 'There are some crimes that are just so horrific, the only appropriate punishment is the death penalty,' DeSantis said, adding: 'these are the worst of the worst.' Julie Andrew expressed relief after witnessing the April execution of the man who killed her sister in the Florida Keys in 2000. 'It's done,' she said. 'My heart felt lighter and I can breathe again.' The governor's office did not respond to questions about why the governor is increasing the pace of executions now and whether Trump's policies are playing a role. Deciding who lives and who dies Little is publicly known about how the governor decides whose death warrant to sign and when, a process critics have called 'secretive' and 'arbitrary.' According to the Florida Department of Corrections, there are 266 people currently on death row, including two men in their 80s, both of whom have been awaiting their court-ordered fate for more than 40 years. Speaking at the press conference in May, DeSantis said it's his 'obligation' to oversee executions, which he hopes provide 'some closure' to victims' families. 'Any time we go forward, I'm convinced that not only was the verdict correct, but that this punishment is absolutely appropriate under the circumstances,' DeSantis said. US ranks alongside Iran and Saudi Arabia for executions For years, the U.S. has ranked alongside Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Egypt as among the countries carrying out the highest number of confirmed executions. China is thought to execute more of its citizens than any other nation, although the exact totals are considered a state secret, according to the non-profit Death Penalty Information Center. Robin Maher, the center's executive director, says elected officials in the U.S. have long used the death penalty as a 'political tool,' adding it's 'a way of embellishing their own tough-on-crime credentials.' Florida executions vary year to year In 2024, DeSantis signed one death warrant. From 2020-2022, Florida didn't carry out a single execution. In 2023, DeSantis oversaw six — the highest number during his time in office until this year. 2023 was also the year the governor challenged Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. There are a number of reasons why the rate of executions may vary from one administration to the next, said Mark Schlakman, an attorney and Florida State University professor who advised then-governor Lawton Chiles on the death penalty. The availability of staff resources, the tempo of lengthy legal appeals, and court challenges against the death penalty itself can all play a role, Schlakman said, as well as a governor's 'sensibilities.' 'The one person who can stop this' One execution after another, opponents of the death penalty hold vigils in the Florida capitol, outside the governor's mansion, and near the state prison that houses the death chamber, as people of faith across the state pray for mercy, healing and justice. Suzanne Printy, a volunteer with the group Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, has hand-delivered thousands of petitions to DeSantis' office, but says they seem to have no effect. Recently, DeSantis signed death warrants for two more men scheduled to die later this month. Still, Printy keeps praying. 'He's the one person who can stop this,' she said. ___
The Independent
29 minutes ago
- The Independent
Columbia Sportswear sues Columbia University claiming merchandise is too similar and causes confusion
Columbia Sportswear is suing Columbia University, accusing the university of copyright infringement and breach of contract. The retailer claims the university's clothing and merchandise are too similar to its own offerings and that those similarities may confuse shoppers. The lawsuit was filed on July 23 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon. Columbia Sportswear has been using the name "Columbia" since 1938. The university and the retailer reportedly signed a deal in 2023 dictating the ways in which the university can use the word "Columbia" on its own apparel and merchandise. The pact stipulated that the university could use the name "Columbia" on merchandise so long as a school logo or mascot, the word "university", or an academic department of the founding year of the school — which dates back to 1754 — were present alongside the word. Columbia Sportswear claims in its lawsuit that the university breached those terms in 2024 when it allegedly began offering merchandise that used the name "Columbia" without any of the school signifiers established in the pact. The retailer also noted in the filing that the university was offering garments with bright blue colors that were "confusingly similar" to the blue used by Columbia Sportswear. 'The likelihood of deception, confusion, and mistake engendered by the university's misappropriation and misuse of the Columbia name is causing irreparable harm to the brand and goodwill symbolized by Columbia Sportswear's registered mark Columbia and the reputation for quality it embodies,' the lawsuit argues. Columbia Sportswear wants to stop all sales of the university's clothing that allegedly violate the 2023 agreement. It further wants a recall of all previously sold items and all the remaining stock to be donated to charity. The retailer is also seeking three times the amount of actual damages determined by a jury if its litigation is successful. $220 million to the Trump administration in order to restore its federal research money that the president cancelled earlier this year. Under the settlement, the college will pay $200 million to the federal government over the next three years.
