A jury in the US state of New Mexico has ordered social media giant Meta to pay $375 million for harming children's mental health and leaving them vulnerable to sexual exploitation. The verdict was delivered after a six-week trial in which state authorities accused the tech behemoth of failing to protect minors.
This ruling marks the first time a US state has successfully sued Meta over child safety issues. Meta, the parent company of Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, is facing a wave of lawsuits regarding how its platforms affect young people's mental health. Jurors sided with state prosecutors who argued that Meta prioritized profits over safety and violated parts of New Mexico's Unfair Practices Act.
The jury agreed with allegations that Meta made false or misleading statements and also engaged in "unconscionable" trade practices that unfairly took advantage of children's vulnerabilities and inexperience. Jurors heard testimony from 40 witnesses, including employees-turned-whistleblowers, and reviewed hundreds of documents, reports, and emails.
A Meta spokesperson said in a statement: "We respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal. We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms and are clear about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors or harmful content." New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat, took Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg to court in 2023 after his office conducted an undercover operation in which investigators posed as Facebook and Instagram users under the age of 14.
Torrez's office stated that the fake accounts on the platforms received sexually explicit material and were contacted by adults seeking similar content, leading to criminal charges against multiple individuals. Torrez called the verdict "a historic victory for every child and family who has paid the price for Meta's choice to put profits over kids' safety." He added: "The substantial damages the jury ordered Meta to pay should send a clear message to big tech executives that no company is beyond the reach of the law."
A second phase in New Mexico's proceedings against Meta is scheduled to begin in May, when a judge will hear the state's claim that the company should be ordered to pay additional penalties and make specific changes to its platforms and corporate operations. A separate jury in California is weighing whether Meta and YouTube should be held liable for harms caused to children on their platforms, including by making them addictive. That case is considered a bellwether that could influence the outcome of thousands of similar lawsuits against social media companies across the United States.
Source: www.aljazeera.com