Meta ordered to pay $567m in US child safety ruling

A New Mexico state court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million (€492 million) and change how its platforms ⁠function for young users in the state after finding the company is to blame for harming children's mental health.

Judge Bryan Biedscheid in Santa Fe ruled the company had created a public nuisance in New Mexico, siding with the state's Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat.

Mr Torrez had accused the social media company of designing its products to addict young users and failing to protect children from sexual exploitation on its platforms.

Judge Biedscheid ordered ‌the company to impose ⁠a range of youth-safety measures, including monthly limits on teens' use of Facebook and Instagram, restrictions on notifications, tighter controls on adult contact with minors, safeguards for AI chatbots, and enhanced review of child sexual abuse reports, under a $567 million decree that will remain in place for five years.

Meta said ‌it will appeal the ruling.

It said it has been working to identify and remove harmful content from its platforms.

"We remain ⁠confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to ‌defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts," Meta said in a ⁠statement.

The ruling ‌came in the second phase of New Mexico's lawsuit.

A jury in March had found Meta violated the state's consumer protection law by misrepresenting the safety of Facebook and Instagram for young users.

⁠It ordered the company to pay $375 million (€325 million) in damages.

Judge Biedscheid heard three weeks of testimony during ⁠the second trial over the lawsuit, which did not involve a jury.

It focused solely on whether Meta’s platforms created a "public nuisance" under New Mexico law.

The case is being closely watched as states, municipalities and school districts across the country pursue similar claims seeking to force changes at the industry level.

In April, the European Commission issued a preliminary finding against Meta for allegedly failing to prevent minors under 13 from using Instagram and Facebook.

The commission said the company had failed to "diligently identify, assess and mitigate the risks of minors under 13 years old accessing their services".

A Meta spokesperson said it disagreed with the preliminary findings.

"We're clear that Instagram and Facebook are intended for people aged 13 and older and we have measures in place to detect and remove accounts from anyone under that age," the spokesperson said.