By Loveth Henry | National News
A court in the United States has ordered technology giant Meta to pay an additional $567 million in damages over its failure to adequately protect children on its social media platforms, bringing the company’s total penalties in the New Mexico case to $942 million.
Judge Bryan Biedscheid of New Mexico ruled that Meta’s platforms constitute a “public nuisance,” comparing the company’s impact on children to environmental pollution. He said the social media giant must establish a fund dedicated to reducing and addressing the harm caused to young users.
The latest ruling follows an earlier $375 million judgment against Meta in the same lawsuit, making it the largest financial penalty the company has faced over child safety concerns.
The lawsuit, filed by the State of New Mexico in 2023, accused Meta of exposing children to sexually explicit material, online predators, and harmful content through its recommendation algorithms. During the trial, the court found that the company’s algorithms repeatedly directed young users toward dangerous content and contacts, violating the state’s consumer protection laws.
Judge Biedscheid ruled that the harmful effects of Meta’s platforms extend beyond the internet, creating widespread social and psychological consequences for children, families, schools, healthcare providers and law enforcement agencies.
Under the court order, approximately $420 million of the fund will finance mental health treatment and behavioural support programmes for children affected by social media harms. Additional funds will be used to train teachers, healthcare workers and other professionals on preventing and responding to online abuse involving minors.
The ruling also requires Meta to introduce stricter child safety measures across its platforms, including preventing adults from being recommended to users under 18, blocking adults from directly messaging minors, banning the exchange of nude images involving underage users, and adopting a one-strike policy against adults involved in child sexual exploitation.
Other measures ordered by the court include removing visible “like” counts for users under 18, restricting push notifications during late-night hours and school hours, and introducing a mandatory monthly usage limit of 90 hours across Instagram and Facebook for underage users.
Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads, rejected the ruling and announced plans to appeal.
In a statement, the company said it remains committed to protecting young users and argued that the court’s findings misrepresented its efforts to identify and remove harmful content from its platforms.
The company continues to face thousands of similar lawsuits across the United States over allegations that its social media platforms have harmed children and failed to safeguard their online safety. Another major child privacy lawsuit involving several US states is expected to begin in California next week.
