Facebook Settlement Sends $725M in Bonus Checks, June 05

A California federal court approved second-round payouts from Facebook’s $725 million privacy settlement on May 6, 2026. About 15.7 million users who cashed their first payment will receive bonus checks starting June 9. The second round redistributes roughly $100 million in uncashed checks and expired digital payments. This settlement traces to the 2018 Cambridge Analytica scandal, when the political consulting firm harvested data from 87 million Facebook users without consent.

Who Gets the Second Payment

Only users who received and cashed their first settlement payment are eligible for the bonus. Approximately 28 million claims were filed in total, making this the largest class action in U.S. history. About 15.7 million people successfully received their initial payment out of roughly 19 million with valid claims. More than 200,000 checks went uncashed, and 3 million digital payments expired, leaving funds available for redistribution.

How Much Will You Receive

The average second-round payment is expected to be about $4.72 per person. Settlement administrators estimate the second payouts will range between $4.67 and $7.30. This is significantly smaller than first-round payments, which ranged from $4.89 to $38.37 with a median of $32.45. First-round amounts were based on how long users maintained active Facebook accounts between May 2007 and December 2022.

When Payments Begin and How to Prepare

The settlement administrator will send bonus payments beginning June 9 and continuing for about four weeks. Eligible recipients will receive an email notification 3 to 4 days before their payment is issued. Users should check their email during this period to confirm payment details. Meta, Facebook’s parent company, denied wrongdoing but agreed to the settlement in 2022 to avoid trial.

The Cambridge Analytica Scandal Behind the Settlement

The settlement stems from lawsuits alleging Facebook made user data accessible to third parties without permission. Cambridge Analytica harvested data from 87 million users to build voter profiles for targeted political ads during the 2016 election. The scandal sparked congressional hearings and public criticism of CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The $725 million settlement was finalized in May 2025, with first-round payments beginning in 2025. After legal and administrative fees, about $556 million was distributed in the first round. Eligible recipients will receive email notifications before each payment is issued.

Final Thoughts

If you cashed your first Facebook settlement payment, expect a bonus check averaging $4.72 starting June 9. This second round closes a chapter on one of the largest privacy violations in tech history, though payments remain modest compared to the scale of the data breach.

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The content shared by Meyka AI PTY LTD is solely for research and informational purposes.  Meyka is not a financial advisory service, and the information provided should not be considered investment or trading advice.