A New Mexico court has ordered the company Meta to pay another $567 million in damages for failing to warn the public about the dangers its platforms pose to children.
The decision constitutes the largest sanction ever imposed on the company for issues related to the safety of minors, the BBC reported on Friday.
Judge Bryan Biedscheid compared Meta's impact to air pollution. According to him, the way the company's platforms operate has caused significant psychological harm and exposed children to sexual exploitation.
This amount is added to a previous fine of $375 million imposed in the same case, bringing Meta's total financial liabilities to $942 million.
In justifying the decision, the judge compared Meta to a factory, where advertising and content constitute the product, while psychological harm and sexual exploitation of children are the "pollution" that must be eliminated.
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"Meta" must pay $375 million for failing in "child safety"
The lawsuit was filed in 2023 by New Mexico state authorities, who argued that Meta's recommendation algorithms directed underage users to harmful content and contacts with people who could pose a risk.
In the first phase of the lawsuit, the court found that Meta had repeatedly violated New Mexico's unfair trade practices law. In the second phase, the judge ruled that the company's influence had reached the level of a public health and safety problem, making Meta the first social media company to be legally declared a "public nuisance."
The decision provides for the creation of a special fund to finance treatment and rehabilitation programs for children affected by the influences of social networks.
About $420 million will be invested in clinical services and mental health programs, while the rest will be used for training teachers, health professionals, and awareness campaigns to prevent online risks.
The court also ordered Meta to implement a series of new security measures for users under the age of 18.
The new measures also include removing the number of likes for users under 18, banning push notifications during nighttime and school hours, and setting a maximum usage limit of 90 hours per month for Instagram and Facebook, or about three hours per day.
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The court does not dismiss the lawsuit against Meta for child abuse.
Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads, has announced that it disagrees with the decision and will appeal it. The company stated that it continues to invest in user security and that the claims raised in the lawsuit do not reflect the facts.
This is not the only legal challenge for Meta. The company is facing thousands of similar lawsuits in the United States, while another major lawsuit is expected to begin next week in California, where nearly 30 American states accuse it of violating laws on privacy and child protection online.
