Overview
- Meta, which a New Mexico jury found liable Tuesday under the state’s Unfair Practices Act, was ordered to pay $375 million in civil penalties and says it will appeal.
- Jurors set the total by applying the $5,000 maximum per violation to thousands of counts, with multiple outlets reporting 37,500 violations, well below the more than $2 billion the state sought.
- The state’s case drew on a 2023 undercover probe that created Facebook and Instagram accounts for users under 14 which rapidly drew explicit content and outreach from adults, leading to criminal charges against individuals.
- Evidence and testimony described product features such as infinite scroll, autoplay video and algorithmic recommendations that drive long use by teens and can funnel predators toward minors, which prosecutors said Meta downplayed in public.
- The case now moves to a May bench phase in which the judge could order changes like stronger age checks and new rules for encrypted messages, while a separate Los Angeles bellwether jury continues deliberations over claims that Instagram and YouTube were built to be addictive after TikTok and Snap settled before trial.