Meta reaches $37.5 million settlement in location tracking lawsuit

Facebook parent company Meta has reached a $37.5 million settlement in a lawsuit that accused the company of violating user privacy by tracking location data through smartphones without asking users to do so.

The big picture: Meta has faced a number of legal challenges in recent years, and recently reached a separate $90 million settlement over location tracking.

Details: The new settlement resolves accusations that Facebook used IP addresses to determine users' locations, despite those users turning off location services, per Bloomberg Law.

• Facebook was accused of using the data for targeted ads, per Reuters.
• The preliminary settlement was filed in a San Francisco federal court Monday. Facebook spokesperson Emil Vazquez confirmed the settlement in an email to Axios.

Worth noting: The lawsuit covers Facebook users in the United States who used the social network any time after Jan. 30, 2015, per Reuters.

Go deeper: FTC sues Meta to stop it from acquiring VR fitness firm