A jury found that Meta violated the law in the US state of New Mexico, in a lawsuit in which the company was accused of failing to warn users about the dangers of its platforms and of failing to protect children from sexual predators, reports CNN.
The jury found Meta guilty on all counts, including trade practices “unfair and deceptive” and “abusive” which he engaged in intentionally, and forced the company to pay damages in the amount of 375 million dollars.
The decision marks the first time Meta has been held liable in a jury trial for child and teen safety issues on its platforms, after years of concerns raised by parents, activists and authorities.
A company spokesman said Meta disagreed “with respect” and plans to appeal the decision.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez sued Meta in 2023, accusing the company of creating a “good ground” for child predators on the Facebook and Instagram platforms, allegations the company denies.
Although the amount awarded is less than the billions of dollars in damages originally sought, a later stage of the lawsuit could force the company to make changes to the platforms and pay additional penalties.
The case is part of a larger wave of lawsuits against major social media platforms related to the safety of young users. In parallel, a jury in Los Angeles is considering a separate case against Meta and YouTube, in which the companies are accused of creating features that are addictive and affect the mental health of teenagers.
The New Mexico trial included testimony from Meta executives and former employees turned whistleblowers. The jury considered whether the firm made misleading statements about the safety of the platforms or whether it knowingly designed products that could harm children.
“We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms, and we recognize the challenges of identifying and removing malicious actors or harmful content. We will continue to defend ourselves vigorously and remain confident in our track record of protecting teens online.”the company said.
On the other side, Raúl Torrez called the verdict “a historic victory for every child and family who paid the price for Meta’s choice to put profits before children’s safety.”
The investigation by New Mexico authorities included the creation of fake accounts impersonating children on Facebook and Instagram. According to prosecutors, those accounts were quickly exposed to sexual content and were contacted by adults, including people later arrested in an undercover operation.
The case also raised concerns about Instagram’s end-to-end encryption, which could make it harder to identify predators. Meta has announced that it will drop this feature for direct messages on Instagram later this year, stating that users can still use encryption on WhatsApp.
But the company claims it has invested heavily in security and that around 40,000 employees work to protect users on its platforms.
