Meta has been ordered to pay a record $942 million penalty after a US judge ruled the company failed to protect children from harm on its social media platforms. The penalty, imposed by a court in New Mexico, consists of a new $567 million fine, adding to an earlier $375 million award in the same case. This ruling marks the largest financial penalty Meta has faced over child safety, highlighting the company's repeated violations of New Mexico's consumer protection laws.
Judge Bryan Biedscheid described Meta as a "public nuisance", comparing the company's impact on children to pollution from a factory. He emphasized that the harms caused by its platforms extend beyond the internet, affecting families, schools, and communities. The lawsuit, filed in 2023, accused Meta of exposing children to sexually explicit content and online predators through its recommendation algorithms.
Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads, has expressed disagreement with the ruling and plans to appeal. The company insists it continues to invest heavily in protecting young users. However, the court has ordered Meta to introduce stricter safeguards, including blocking adults from messaging minors, removinglike counts for users under 18, restricting overnight notifications, and limiting teenage use of Facebook and Instagram to about three hours a day.
The decision adds to growing legal pressure on Meta, which is already facing thousands of lawsuits in the United States over claims its platforms harm children and teenagers. This ruling also comes as governments worldwide move to tighten rules on child safety across social media, further emphasizing the need for tech companies to prioritize the protection of young users.
