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Terms of use

Meta

Meta Terms of Service

C

Risk score

41of 100

In short

  • These terms let Meta show you personalized ads using your personal data.
  • You grant a broad license to use your content, and deletion takes up to nine months if backups are involved.
  • Changes can be made with thirty days' notice.

What you accept

If you tap Agree

Everyday words for the material promises and rights you give up. Each line includes a quote from the document.

  1. 01

    You are agreeing that we can show you personalized ads and other commercial content that businesses pay us to promote on and off Meta Products.

    Other products, stores, or brands

    “by using the Meta Products covered by these Terms, you agree that we can show you personalized ads and other commercial and sponsored content”
  2. 02

    You are agreeing that we get a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, and worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content.

    This product

    “you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, and worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content”
  3. 03

    You are agreeing that it may take up to ninety days to delete content after we begin the account deletion process.

    This product

    “It may take up to 90 days to delete content after we begin the account deletion process or receive a content deletion request.”

What it can cost you

Downsides we could quote

Quoted clauses that can affect your privacy, money, or right to go to court — including terms that follow you to other products.

Highest-cost clauses first

High cost

Broad license to user content

You are agreeing to give Meta a broad, sublicensable license to use and modify your content.

“you grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, and worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content”

What that means: Your posts, photos, and videos can be used, modified, or shared by third parties under the company's authority.

The company requires a wide-ranging license that allows them to modify, share, and sub-license user content globally, even though they state users retain ownership.

High cost

Tracking you across apps

You are agreeing to have your off-platform activity monitored for personalization.

“We use data about the connections you make, the choices and settings you select, and what you share and do on and off our Products - to personalize your experience.”

What that means: Your movements and interests outside Facebook influence the content and ads you see here.

The company tracks activity both on its services and elsewhere across the web to curate specific content and advertisements.

Medium cost

Difficult or incomplete deletion

You are agreeing that full deletion may require up to 180 days when counting backup removal times.

“After the content is deleted, it may take us up to another 90 days to remove it from backups and disaster recovery systems.”

What that means: Deleted information stays on servers longer than it appears gone.

Even after visible deletion, data remains in backup systems for an additional ninety days, delaying complete erasure.

Lower cost

Unilateral changes with little or no notice

You are agreeing to accept future changes if you continue using the service.

“We will notify you (for example, by email or through our Products) at least 30 days before we make changes to these Terms”

What that means: You are bound by new rules shortly after being notified, giving limited time to react.

The company reserves the right to change terms unilaterally but must provide thirty days' advance notice for most updates.

People also accept these terms in

The same company terms often apply on these apps or devices. This is a lookup aid, not a claim we caught this company.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Whatsapp
  • Meta Quest
  • Oculus

If these terms already apply to you

Keep this list. Fineprint cannot undo or cancel something you already agreed to at the company.

We cannot see Agree on their site. With Premium, tap “I accepted these terms” if you already agreed to what Meta asks.