Epic Games to pay $520M for violating US child privacy laws
In this photo illustration a Fortnite logo seen displayed on a smartphone screen in Athens, Greece on May 11, 2022. (Reuters Photo)


Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, will pay $520 million for violating children's privacy laws in the U.S. and misleading minors into making purchases, the company and the Federal Trade Commission said Monday.

It will pay $275 million for violating the privacy law and has agreed to adopt strong default privacy settings for young people.

It will also pay $245 million to refund consumers duped by so-called "dark patterns" into making purchases they did not intend to make, the FTC said.

"Epic used privacy-invasive default settings and deceptive interfaces that tricked Fortnite users, including teenagers and children," said FTC Chair Lina Khan in a statement.

"Protecting the public, and especially children, from online privacy invasions and dark patterns is a top priority for the Commission."