A jury orders Meta to pay $375 million for exposing minors to sexual exploitation

A New Mexico jury ruled against Meta Platforms on Tuesday, ordering it to pay $375 million in civil penalties after concluding that the company violated state consumer protection law by misleading the public about safety for minors on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

The verdict closed six weeks of trial and constitutes the first jury conviction against Meta on such charges, amid a wave of lawsuits across the country challenging the impact of social media on the mental health of young people.

The lawsuit, prompted by Democratic Attorney General Raul Torrez, stemmed from an undercover operation his office conducted in 2023: investigators created Facebook and Instagram profiles pretending to be under 14 years old. The accounts received sexually explicit material and were contacted by adults seeking such content, leading to criminal charges against several individuals.

Torrez accused Meta of allowing predators to access minors freely, in many cases, facilitating actual abuse and human trafficking situations. According to the state, internal company documents acknowledged these problems, but Meta failed to implement basic tools such as age verification and continued to publicly assure that its platforms were safe.

"Over the course of a decade, Meta has failed over and over again to act honestly and transparently," prosecutor Linda Singer said during closing arguments. "It’s failed to act to protect young people in this state. It is up to you to finish this job."

Meta rejected the verdict. "We respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal," a company spokesman said. "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."

The company also faces thousands of separate lawsuits accusing it and other platforms of designing its products to foster addiction among young people. Some are seeking damages in the tens of billions of dollars. One of the main arguments is that features such as infinite scroll and automatic video playback keep minors hooked on the platforms, leading to depression, anxiety and self-harm behaviors.

In May, Judge Bryan Biedscheid will preside over an additional trial on whether Meta created a public nuisance that harmed the health of New Mexico residents.