Judge orders Meta to pay $25 billion to New Mexico in Cambridge Analytica case
The decision comes after a jury found that the company committed more than 43 million violations of state consumer protection laws, according to AFP.
A judge in New Mexico ordered on Wednesday that Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, pay $25 billion to the state for misleading users about the privacy of their personal data and the security policies of its platforms.
The decision comes after a jury found that the company committed more than 43 million violations of state consumer protection laws, according to AFP.
The case is related to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, involving a British political consulting firm linked to Donald Trump's in 2016, which obtained personal information from up to 87 million Facebook users without authorization to use it for political propaganda.
The investigation also called into question Meta's statements regarding who could access its users' data and how the company combated misinformation and hate speech.
Judge Francis Mathew initially considered a fine exceeding $219 billion, but ultimately reduced it to $25 billion, as reported by other media outlets.
The ruling represents another legal setback for the tech giant led by Mark Zuckerberg. Just a few months ago, Meta reached an $18 billion settlement with 48 other states to resolve lawsuits related to child safety on its platforms, a separate matter from the Cambridge Analytica case.
The company announced that it will appeal the New Mexico ruling, so the penalty could still be modified.
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