New Mexico Jury Orders Meta to Pay $375M Over Child Safety Failures

A New Mexico state court jury on Tuesday found Meta liable for nearly 400 million dollars in civil damages in a case accusing the social media giant of failing to safeguard children from predators on its platforms. The jury ruled that Meta willfully violated the state's consumer protection act and misled residents about the safety measures on Facebook and Instagram. The decision comes after an undercover operation that involved creating a fake 13-year-old profile, which investigators said was inundated with inappropriate content and predatory outreach. Attorney General Raúl Torrez framed the verdict as a major victory for families who have felt the harms of online exploitation, arguing that the company prioritized profits over child safety. Meta, which denied the allegations, maintained that it is committed to protecting young users and stated it will appeal the verdict. The trial began in Santa Fe, with jurors weighing the company’s practices against New Mexico’s unfair practices act and related consumer protections laws. The jury assigned damages based on the number of violations they found, ultimately totaling about $375 million, a figure that Some observers described as a civil penalty aimed at deterrence rather than a punitive cap on the company’s conduct. Meta executives indicated they would vigorously contest the ruling, saying they disagree with the conclusions and will continue to defend their platform’s safety measures and transparency around parental controls and age-appropriate settings. The attorney general’s office argued that Meta’s products and algorithms made it too easy for predators to reach young people, and that the company failed to verify user age or implement stronger safeguards in a timely manner. The verdict arrives at a moment when policymakers and consumer groups are pressing major tech platforms to strengthen safeguards, increase age verification, and introduce independent verification of safety features. While the case focuses on New Mexico, advocates say the decision could influence broader conversations about platform accountability and how tech firms address child exploitation online. In the next phase of the lawsuit, Torrez’s office plans to push for concrete changes to the platform, including algorithm design revisions, enhanced age verification, and independent verification mechanisms to ensure compliance with the order and improve user safety.

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