Meta misled users about the safety of its platforms and enabled the sexual exploitation of young users, a New Mexico jury found on Tuesday, one of the first major child safety trial losses for the social media giant.
The state’s attorney general, Raúl Torrez, sued Meta in 2023, accusing it of misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms. The company’s lax safety protocols allowed sexual predators to contact minors, the lawsuit added.
The jury, in State District Court in Santa Fe, agreed, ordering Meta to pay $375 million in damages for violating state consumer protection laws.
“The jury’s verdict is a historic victory for every child and family who has paid the price for Meta’s choice to put profits over kids’ safety,” Mr. Torrez said in a statement. “Meta executives knew their products harmed children, disregarded warnings from their own employees and lied to the public about what they knew.”
Meta said it would appeal the decision. “We will continue to defend ourselves vigorously, and we remain confident in our record of protecting teens online,” Andy Stone, a company spokesman, said in a statement.
Individuals, school districts and state attorneys general have filed thousands of lawsuits accusing Meta, Snap, TikTok and YouTube of harming young users.
The New Mexico verdict is the first loss for Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, in a series of trials slated for this year. In Los Angeles, a jury has been deliberating for more than a week in a bellwether social media addiction trial in which Meta and YouTube are accused of harming the mental health of a user through addictive design features.
Parents, policymakers and the tech industry watched the New Mexico case closely for its potential to force Meta to change the design of its products.
Mr. Torrez said he would ask the judge, Bryan Biedscheid, for additional financial penalties during a bench trial that is scheduled to start May 4. Mr. Torrez also plans to ask the court to force changes to Meta’s apps to make them safer for young users.
“Between this case and the ongoing trial in Los Angeles, parents, survivors and state officials are doing their part to hold Big Tech accountable,” said Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, a child safety group.
To build their case, state investigators posed as underage users to lure online predators to document instances of solicitation. Instagram is a “breeding ground” for sexual exploitation, according to the lawsuit.
The six-week trial included testimony from teachers, investigators and whistle-blowers who spoke about safety concerns on Meta’s platforms. The jury began deliberations on Monday.
“The chickens are coming home to roost,” said Matthew Bergman, a lawyer with the Social Media Victims Law Center, which is representing the plaintiff in the civil case against Meta in Los Angeles. “It’s the first step toward real accountability.”
Ryan Mac contributed reporting from Los Angeles.
Cecilia Kang reports on technology and regulatory policy for The Times from Washington. She has written about technology for over two decades.
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