A court in New Mexico has ordered Meta Platforms to pay $375 million in damages after a jury found the company misled users about the safety of its platforms for children.
The verdict followed a lawsuit brought by New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, who described the ruling as “historic” and said it marked the first successful case by a US state against Meta over child safety concerns.
The jury concluded that Meta — which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — violated the state’s Unfair Practices Act by misleading the public about the risks faced by young users. Jurors found that the company’s platforms exposed children to sexually explicit content and contact with predators.
The case was heard over seven weeks, during which jurors reviewed internal company documents and heard testimony from former employees indicating that Meta was aware of such risks.
Among them was whistleblower Arturo Béjar, who told the court that his internal experiments showed underage users on Instagram were being served sexualised content. He also said his own daughter had received inappropriate sexual advances from a stranger on the platform.
Prosecutors also presented internal research suggesting that at one stage, 16% of Instagram users reported encountering unwanted nudity or sexual activity within a single week.
Meta, led by chief executive Mark Zuckerberg, rejected the findings and said it plans to appeal the decision. A company spokesperson said Meta continues to invest in safety measures and acknowledged the challenges of identifying harmful content and bad actors online, while maintaining confidence in its efforts to protect young users.
The total penalty of $375 million was calculated after the jury determined there had been thousands of violations, each carrying a potential fine of up to $5,000.
Meta argued that it has taken steps in recent years to improve user safety, including launching “Teen Accounts” on Instagram in 2024 to give younger users greater control, and introducing a feature last month to alert parents if their children search for self-harm-related content.
The company is also facing a separate trial in Los Angeles, where a woman alleges she became addicted to platforms such as Instagram and YouTube — owned by Google — during her childhood due to their design.
Thousands of similar lawsuits are currently pending across US courts.
New Mexico filed the case in 2023, accusing Meta of directing young users towards sexually explicit material, child abuse content, and even solicitation and trafficking-related risks through its recommendation algorithms.
“Meta executives knew their products harmed children, ignored warnings from their own staff, and misled the public,” Torrez said, adding that the jury’s decision reflects growing concern among families, educators and child safety advocates.
#From BBC