This review explains Meta’s Privacy Policy in plain language, for people who use Facebook, Instagram, or Messenger, and for parents of teens. It was checked on September 23, 2026. The policy was updated July 23, 2026. The United States regional notice and the “learn more” pages linked from the AI update were not fully opened. This is not legal advice.
Primary source: Meta Privacy Policy, including the printable version checked the same day.
Snapshot
- Covers Meta Products, including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and AI at Meta. It also covers Meta Quest if you log in with a Meta account.
- The July 23, 2026 update adds agentic AI, meaning tools you can direct to take actions such as booking a restaurant or sending an email.
- Information shared with AI at Meta features is used to improve AI at Meta unless you have objected.
- Meta says it does not sell your information, and it still provides advertisers with reports about who sees and engages with ads.
- Supervision tools exist for a teen account, with a supervisor the teen chooses, such as a parent.
What they collect
The policy says Meta collects information from different sources. You can choose whether certain information is used in Accounts Center, including whether information is combined across accounts on different Products, and in cookie settings, including activity on other websites and apps that use Meta’s business tools.
For AI features, the policy lists prompts, which can include questions, messages, media, and other information you or others share with those features; the responses you receive; information about actions the features take, including data they access or share to take those actions; feedback; and information used to personalize the features. It also lists information from third-party apps you connect.
Who gets the data
The printable policy says, “We don’t sell your information, and we never will,” and that partners and other third parties must follow rules on how they can use information Meta provides. Advertisers receive reports about the number and kinds of people who see and engage with their ads. The policy also lists advertisers, publishers, app developers, and device makers as examples of partners. A full map of every partner share was not copied into this review. The United States regional notice is the page Meta points to for Personal Information handling and rights. It was not the page used for the quotes above.
Easy to miss
- “We never sell” is not the same as “advertisers learn nothing.” They get reports about audiences and engagement.
- AI improvement is on unless you object. The policy states that. The click-path for the objection is on a “learn more” page that was not opened for this review, so this page does not invent the menu name.
- Agentic AI can be directed to send an email or book a table. The policy says Meta collects the data those features access or share to take the action. That is a wider permission than a chatbot that only answers in the app.
- Accounts Center is where combining information across Facebook and Instagram is controlled. Leaving that on means activity on one app can inform the other.
New technology
The July 23, 2026 change notice is the clearest new-technology flag in this review. Meta added details about AI integrations, personalizing AI experiences, and agentic AI. The example Meta gives is a tool you direct to book a restaurant or send an email. Information shared with those features is used to improve AI at Meta unless you have objected.
Prompts can include media, not only text. If a teen uploads a photo to an AI feature, that upload is in the category the policy describes as collected.
Kids and families
Supervision, as described in the policy, gives supervisors chosen by a teen, such as parents and guardians, tools and insights for a teen account. That is not the same as a secret parent login. The teen chooses the supervisor. This review did not walk through the in-app Supervision screens, so treat the exact toggles as something to confirm in the app.
A minimum age and a children’s policy were not quoted from the pages opened for this review. Do not treat this page as the rule for under-13 accounts.
Older adults
Marketplace, Messenger, and ad-click chats are common places for impersonation. Meta will not need your password to “fix” an account by phone. Privacy controls the policy names are Accounts Center and cookie settings, used while you are signed in, not a code read to a caller.
What you can turn off
- Open Accounts Center and review whether information is combined across Facebook, Instagram, and other Meta Products. The policy names this control.
- Open cookie settings and review collection of activity on other websites and apps that use Meta business tools.
- Before using an AI feature that can send a message or make a booking, assume the prompt and the action data are collected, and look for the objection control the policy mentions. This review did not confirm the button label.
- For a teen, use Supervision only with the teen’s knowledge. Confirm the current tools in the app.
What this means for you
The 2026 change that matters for a family is not a small wording edit. Meta now describes AI that can act for you, and it says information shared with those features is used to improve its AI unless you object. Read that before a teen, or an older adult, connects an inbox or a calendar.
Does Meta sell personal information?
The policy says Meta does not sell your information and never will. It also says advertisers receive reports about the people who see and engage with ads. Those are different statements. Both were on the policy checked September 23, 2026.
Are AI chats used to train Meta’s AI?
The update notice says information shared with AI at Meta features is used to improve AI at Meta unless you have objected. The objection steps were not on the summary page opened for this review.
This is not legal advice. Checked September 23, 2026. The policy date was July 23, 2026.