SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – A jury on Tuesday sided with New Mexico’s justice department in its case against Meta – the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp – over claims that the social media giant knowingly put children and teen users in danger.
The verdict makes the tech giant liable for $375 million worth of damages to be paid to the State of New Mexico. That is still significantly less than the original penalty the state was seeking of more than $2 billion. In its ruling, the jury found hundreds of thousands of instances in which Meta engaged in unfair, deceptive, or unconscionable trade practices, violating state law.
A Meta spokesperson provided the following statement to Nexstar’s KRQE:
“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. We will continue to defend ourselves vigorously, and we remain confident in our record of protecting teens online.”
Closing arguments in the case wrapped up on Monday, following six weeks of arguments and testimony. Attorneys for the NMDOJ claimed in closing arguments that internal documents show Meta targeted kids and teens to keep them on their apps longer to make more money. The state also argued that Meta hasn’t done enough to keep underage users off their platform and protect them from predators or from being exploited.
Meta’s defense fired back, saying the company tells the truth and has disclosed the potential harms of its apps. In response to the state’s accusations of false and misleading claims, Meta said those statements were cherry-picked and taken out of context. The defense also maintained that it does not design its platforms to harm teens, but there are bad actors and content that they actively work to remove.
The civil suit against Meta was filed by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez in 2023, following an undercover investigation by the NMDOJ in which investigators created fake accounts to see how Meta’s platforms would serve content to children under the age of 15.
The landmark lawsuit in New Mexico state court is the first of more than 40 others to reach a trial and a verdict. Experts around the globe have tuned in to see what happens in New Mexico.
The state has another case it plans to bring against Meta, accusing the company of violating public nuisance law. That’s now slated for a May bench trial.
This is a developing story.
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