Meta Faces $567 Million Penalty in New Mexico Case Over Child Safety
A New Mexico court has imposed a $567 million penalty on Meta Platforms, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, to address the impact of its services on young users. This ruling comes as the second phase of a significant trial unfolds.
Judge Bryan Biedscheid, in a recent decision, allocated $420 million of the penalty to fund treatment services for the youth. The remaining funds are earmarked for awareness, prevention, and screening services over the next five years.
This financial penalty adds to a $375 million civil penalty previously levied in March. Jurors had determined that Meta knowingly harmed children’s mental health and concealed information about child sexual exploitation on its platforms. In this trial phase, prosecutors have urged for substantial changes by Meta to curb addictive features, enhance age verification, and prevent exploitation through improved privacy settings.
Despite the $942 million total penalty, it represents a minor portion of Meta’s annual profit of approximately $60 billion in 2025. The stock market reacted minimally, with Meta’s stock dipping less than half a percent in after-hours trading, settling at $589.44.
This ruling is yet another challenge for Meta amidst numerous lawsuits from families claiming their children were harmed by social media.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez stated the decision underscores the accountability for companies that knowingly endanger children through product design. “Today’s decision is a victory for every parent who has worried about what social media is doing to their child and every child who deserves to grow up safer online,” he remarked.
In response, Meta plans to appeal. The company affirmed its commitment to user safety and transparency about the difficulties in managing harmful content, expressing confidence in its efforts to protect teens online.
Changes Ordered for Meta’s Platforms
The court has mandated updates to Facebook and Instagram, requiring the addition of banners and informational screens detailing protection features, best practices, and tools for addressing inappropriate content. These updates, along with a New Mexico-based educational campaign, will undergo state review.
Federal privacy laws, such as the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), restrict Meta from using age-verification tools for children under 13. The court highlighted the potential inequity of imposing age verification solely on Meta, rather than across all social media platforms.
Instead, Meta must enhance its age assurance systems, employing artificial intelligence to estimate user ages based on their online behavior. The company is tasked with developing an “under-13-years-of-age prediction model” within two years. Meta is also required to collect age proof from New Mexico users suspected to be underage, and implement measures to treat such users as under 13 or 18 until age verification is confirmed.
Furthermore, Meta must collaborate with schools or child safety organizations to establish a reporting portal for underage users and delete personal data of users under 13. Progress reports on compliance will be submitted biannually.
Upcoming Trials and Legal Challenges
Meta is preparing for a trial in California, where it will face initial lawsuits from four of the 29 states that sued the company in 2023. These states allege Meta’s platform designs contribute to the youth mental health crisis by fostering addiction.
In addition, eight states, including Tennessee, have filed lawsuits independently in their state courts. Recently, Meta, along with other tech giants like TikTok, Snap, and YouTube, was sued by families of teenagers who tragically died by suicide, allegedly due to prolonged exposure to the platforms.
Laura Edelson, a social media and cybersecurity expert at Northeastern University, commented, “America is not going to pass a law that bans social media. But if companies like Meta know they’re causing harm to users by product design, the states are finally finding a way to rein this in.”
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