New Mexico court orders Meta to pay $567 million over child safety harms

A New Mexico court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million over harms to young people linked to its platforms -- in what is the largest fine against Instagram and Facebook’s parent company over child safety. [Read More]

A New Mexico court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million and introduce sweeping changes to protect teenagers on Facebook and Instagram. The judgment follows a $375 million civil penalty awarded earlier, taking Meta’s total liability in the case to nearly $942 million. The court cited concerns over youth mental health, child safety and online exploitation, while ordering limits on teen usage, notifications and adult-minor contact. Meta has rejected the findings and plans to appeal.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and others, must pay nearly $1 billion after a court found the social media giant to have put children and teen users at risk. A New Mexico judge ruled that Meta must pay $567 million into a fund to pay for harm prevention and awareness, in addition to $375 million in civil penalties previously decided by a jury.

In a landmark ruling against Meta, a New Mexico judge likened the company’s social media platforms to factories. The psychological harm to children who use Facebook and Instagram, he said, can be seen as their pollution. Judge Bryan Biedscheid fined the company $567 million in his ruling Thursday, but he also prescribed steps to clean up what he described as its byproducts. He ordered new safety measures, including a time limit of 90 hours per month for users under 18, artificial intelligence chatbot restrictions and mandatory warnings on the platforms. How easily those features can be implemented, and how effective they could be at protecting young users from mental health harms, are unresolved questions. They also would apply only to children in New Mexico, Meta has no deadline to introduce them, and the company has said it will appeal the ruling. But the judge’s order showed a possible path forward for other court fights around the country as Meta faces mounting legal, regulatory and public pressure to do more to protect young people. The ruling came in the second phase of a trial

The decision comes as Meta is ready to go on trial next week in a federal court in Oakland, California, over allegations made by 29 states that it misled users about their safety and created Facebook and Instagram to addict youngsters.

The ruling in New Mexico on Thursday adds to a previous fine of $375 million in the same case in March, when a jury found the social media giant liable for making youths vulnerable to predators on its platforms.

A New Mexico judge ordered Meta Platforms to pay more than $900 million and restrict how much time young users in the state can spend on its apps, sharply raising the cost of a landmark child safety verdict against Mark Zuckerberg's social media giant. The post New Mexico Judge Orders Meta to Pay $942 Million over Child Safety Harms appeared first on Breitbart.

A US state court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million and restrict some Facebook and Instagram features for children, in what is being described as the largest child-safety ruling against the company. The court found that Meta had created a “public nuisance” that endangered young users. The ruling comes as dozens of other US states pursue lawsuits accusing the company of harming children and their mental health.

Meghan Bobrowsky and Erin Mulvaney, reporting for The Wall Street Journal (gift link): A New Mexico judge ordered Meta Platforms to pay more than $900 million and limit the time young people in the state can spend on its apps, significantly increasing the cost of the landmark child safety verdict against the Facebook and Instagram parent. The judge said Thursday that Meta must create a new $567 million abatement fund in addition to paying $375 million in civil penalties that a jury previously ordered. The company must also enact certain safety features such as limiting the amount of time underage users in the state spend on Facebook and Instagram, hiding by default the number of “likes” on photos for such people and disclosing to users there the risks of its platforms. The creation of the fund, aimed at rectifying harms caused by the Facebook parent’s social-media apps, was “necessary, due to the wide-ranging impacts of the harm and the complex nature of the remedy,” state Judge Bryan Biedscheid said. The dollar-amount of the abatement fund was slightly smaller than the $779.5 million attorneys for the state sought. Meta said it disagreed with the ruling and planned to appeal. You don’t say. The next trial, brought by four state attorneys general, begins jury selection in Oakland, Calif., next week. Meta said in a court filing that the states in that case are asking for more than $1 trillion in damages. The case they just lost, with a judgment of about $1 billion, was for New Mexico alone. If this isn’t overturned, and then sets nationwide precedent, we’re talking real money. The tobacco companies survived, but this seems like that. Investors seem unconcerned — Meta’s stock is up 1.5% so far this morning.  ★ 

Meta Ordered To Pay $567 Million In New Mexico For Children's Mental Health Fund A New Mexico state judge on Aug. 6 ordered Meta to pay $567 million into a fund dedicated to remedying the harm caused to children’s mental health by the company’s social media platforms. Meta is the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. State judge Bryan Biedscheid said in a 68-page order that most of the total youth mental health fund, or $420 million, would go toward treatment services for children harmed by social media. The remainder of the fund would be directed toward awareness and prevention, screening and assessment, referrals and coordination, and implementation, according to the order. “The Court finds that the weight of the evidence presented demonstrates that Meta’s platforms are a cause of and substantial contributing factor to the youth mental health crisis in New Mexico,” the judge wrote. Furthermore, as Aldgra Fredly reports for The Epoch Times, in his ruling, Biedscheid ordered the company to delete the accounts of users under 13, along with all personal information collected from those accounts, and simplify the steps for reporting underage users. Meta was also ordered to disable push notifications on its platforms for users under 18 between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. on all days, and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on school days during the academic year. The company is also required to implement mandatory usage time limits for those accounts and hide, by default, all like counts on their content unless a parent or guardian authorizes a change to the default setting. New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez hailed the ruling as a victory for parents and children, saying that youngsters deserve to have a safer environment online. “This case has always been about protecting children, standing up for families, and making sure that one of the world’s largest technology companies cannot profit from practices that endanger young people without consequence,” Torrez said in a statement. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said in a post on X that the company disagreed with the ruling and planned to appeal, noting that Meta had been working to remove bad actors and harmful content from its platforms. “We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts,” Stone said. The latest penalty comes on top of the $375 million fines that a New Mexico jury imposed on Meta in March for violating the state’s Unfair Practices Act by failing to disclose the potential risks of its social media platforms to children. New Mexico sued Meta in December 2023, alleging that the company’s social media platforms served as a “breeding ground” for predators targeting children for human trafficking, sexual image distribution, grooming, and solicitation. Meta denied the allegations, saying at the time that it uses advanced technology to root out bad actors and employs child safety experts. The company also said that it shares information and tools with other companies and law enforcement, including state attorneys general, to help identify predators. Tyler Durden Fri, 08/07/2026 - 10:40

A New Mexico court on Thursday ordered Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta to pay $567 million after determining it contributed to the "teen mental health crisis" in the state. The order adds to the $375 million in civil penalties Meta was ordered to pay in the first phase of the trial after a jury...

Meta must pay $567 million that will go into a fund devoted to remedying a youth mental health crisis.

Meta, the tech giant that operates Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and other platforms, faces another financial penalty for allegedly failing to keep kids safe. A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay $567 million for its failure to warn the public about the dangers its products pose to children.

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP)—A United States (US) state court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million and limit some features for children on its Facebook and Instagram platforms, saying the social media giant had created a "public nuisance" that endangered young users. The ruling in New Mexico on Thursday adds to a previous fine of $375 million in the same case in March, when a jury found the social media giant liable for making youths vulnerable to predators on its platforms. While Meta said it would appeal, the decision sets a precedent at a time when dozens of other US states are pursuing lawsuits alleging harms to children and their mental health, including a major trial against Meta set to open in California next week. "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," New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez said. "This case has always been about protecting children, standing up for families, and making sure that one of the world's largest technology companies cannot profit from practices that endanger young people without consequence." It was the first time a US court has found a social media firm guilty of creating a "public nuisance", amid thousands of lawsuits claiming Meta had put children at risk. Around three-fourths of the $567 million payment ordered Thursday will be earmarked for a mental health treatment fund, to be paid over five years. The remainder will be allocated to programs for "awareness and prevention" of potential dangers to youths and ensuring Meta implements the ordered changes. - Limits on 'like' counts - Judge Bryan Biedscheid said in his ruling that teenagers were particularly susceptible to features designed to capture and boost engagement such as autoplay, infinite scrolling, "like" counts, push notifications and algorithmic recommendations. He ordered Meta to limit push notifications and usage to 90 hours a month for users under 18, or around three hours daily on average, and to block certain notifications altogether during school hours. It must also hide "like counts" and pursue efforts to ensure children in New Mexico who are under 13 are not allowed to join Facebook or Instagram. Meta will also have to provide the court with updates twice a year regarding its efforts to comply. "We disagree with the ruling and will appeal," Meta told AFP in a statement. It said it remained "confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts". - More trials loom - During closing arguments, prosecutor Linda Singer told the jury that Meta had concealed internal findings about the risks to young people, even as its algorithms directed adults toward content posted by teens. The company had already been found guilty in March of violating New Mexico's Unfair Practices Act by misleading consumers about the safety of its products for children. More than 30 US states are suing Meta over similar allegations. In July, a US teenager dropped his lawsuit against Meta just days before the trial was set to begin after confidential settlements with it alongside YouTube, TikTok and Snap. A first bellwether trial for social media harms on mental health concluded in March, when a Los Angeles jury ordered Meta and Google to pay a 20-year-old woman $6 million. In May, Meta, Snap, TikTok and YouTube reached confidential settlements with a Kentucky school district.

Attorney General Raúl Torrez had accused the social media company of designing products to addict young users and failing to protect children from sexual exploitation on its platforms

The ruling is in addition to $375m in fines Meta was already ordered to pay in the case, for a total of $942m.

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez sued Meta, which makes Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp -- in 2023, alleging the company failed to protect children from online dangers.

Judge Bryan Biedscheid said in a ruling late Thursday that the bulk of the money will be used for treatment services for young people.

Aug 6 (Reuters) - A New Mexico state court ordered Meta on Thursday to pay $567 million into a teen mental health fund and change how its platforms function for young users after finding the company is to blame for harming children's wellbeing.

A New Mexico judge has penalised the tech giant for creating a public nuisance and endangering children online. Meta confirmed it plans to appeal, insisting it works hard to protect young users across its platforms.

A New Mexico judge ruled Meta created a "public nuisance" that harmed children's mental health, ordering the company to pay over half a billion dollars in damages and overhaul safety features on Facebook and Instagram.

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial. Judge Bryan Biedscheid said in a ruling late Thursday that the bulk of the money — $420 million — will be used for treatment services for young people. The rest will go toward awareness and prevention, screening services and other costs over the next five years. The new penalty is in addition to the $375 million in civil penalties that jurors ordered against Meta in March after determining the company knowingly harmed children’s mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its platforms. In the second phase, prosecutors asked the judge to impose fundamental changes at Meta aimed at reining in addictive features, improving age verification and preventing child sexual exploitation through default privacy settings and closer oversight. The total amount Meta is responsible for — $942 million — is a small fraction of of its annual profit, which was about $60 billion i

Santa Fe: A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay USD 567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial the social media giant lost in March.Also Watch: In a ruling late Thursday, Judge Bryan Biedcheid said the bulk of the money — USD 420 million — will be used for treatment services for young people. The rest will go toward awareness and prevention, screening services and other costs over the next five years.In the first phase, jurors had ordered USD 375 million in civil penalties against Meta, determining that it knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its platforms.Explained: Will GPay Transactions Soon Be Chargeable In India? In the second phase, prosecutors had asked the judge to impose fundamental changes at Meta aimed at reining in addictive features, improving age verification and preventing child sexual exploitation through default privacy settings and closer oversight.The court said federal children's privacy laws prevent Meta from applying age-verification tools to children under 13. The Children's Online Privacy Act, or COPPA, means it cannot order Meta to request children to submit personal data or be passively tracked online, even for age verification purposes.'Indian Law Is Not Meant To Be Taken Lightly': Cyberlaw Expert Pavan Duggal Reacts On Meta's Apology The court also noted that ordering Meta to verify children's ages for only Meta and not other social media companies would be “inequitable and unduly injurious” to the company.The Associated Press has reached out to New Mexico's Department of Justice and Meta for comment on the decision.(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)

New Mexico judge orders tech group to pay extra fine in lawsuit brought by state attorney-general in 2023

The ruling on Thursday follows the first phase of the trial in March, when a jury found that Meta knowingly harmed children's mental health.

A New Mexico judge on Thursday ordered Meta to pay more than $500 million, finding the social media company created a public nuisance and harmed children. The ruling follows a March jury verdict awarding the state $375 million after finding Meta liable for exposing children to online predators and other harms.

A New Mexico judge on Thursday ordered Meta to pay more than $500 million, finding the social media company created a public nuisance and harmed children. The ruling follows a March jury verdict awarding the state $375 million after finding Meta liable for exposing children to online predators and other harms.

A New Mexico judge on Thursday ordered Meta to pay more than half a billion dollars over the state’s claims that the social media giant created a “public nuisance” and harmed children. Meta was previously ordered to pay US$375 million in damages to New Mexico in March when a jury found the company liable for endangering children by making them vulnerable to predators on its platforms, among other harms. “We disagree with the ruling and will appeal,” Meta said in a statement Thursday. “We work...

Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has been ordered to pay $567m (£421m) to address the harm caused to children on its platforms.

The ruling comes in the second phase of a landmark trial, with the Instagram, Facebook owner also losing in March.

Meta, parent company of Instagram and Facebook, was ordered by a court to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial. Judge Bryan Biedscheid said in a ruling late Thursday that the bulk of the money — $420 million — will be used for treatment services for young people. The rest will go toward awareness and prevention, screening services and other costs over the next five years. The new penalty is in addition to the $375 million in civil penalties that jurors ordered against Meta in March after determining […]...Keep on reading: Meta ordered to pay $567M to address kids' mental health online

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $US567 million ($806 million) to address harms to young people from its platforms.

The ruling is another setback for Meta, which faces an avalanche of lawsuits from thousands of families of children harmed by social media

Judge Bryan Biedscheid said in a ruling late Thursday that the bulk of the money — $420 million — will be used for treatment services for young people. The rest will go toward awareness and prevention, screening services and other costs over the next five years.

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms

A New Mexico judge ordered the social-media giant to create a new $567 million fund in addition to paying $375 million in previously determined civil penalties.

A New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay a total of $942 million for failing to protect children on its platforms.

A judge ordered the creation of a $567 million abatement fund on top of $375 million in civil penalties that a jury had already assessed against the Facebook and Instagram parent

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms.

A New Mexico state court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million and change how its platforms ⁠function for young users in the state after finding the company is to blame for harming children's mental health.

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial the social media giant lost in March.

Ruling comes as part of second phase of landmark trial that found social media company enabled harm against usersA New Mexico court has ordered Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to pay $567m for mental health harm to children from its platforms.Judge Bryan Biedscheid said the bulk of the money – $420m – would be used for treatment services for young people. The rest will go toward awareness and prevention, screening services and other costs over the next five years. Continue reading...

Judge orders Facebook and Instagram to build banner and informational screens to clearly explain protection features, among other measures

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial the social media giant lost in March.

A New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial.

Source: PBS News HourA New Mexico court has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms. Most of the money will be used to treat young people and increase awareness and prevention. The penalty is in addition to $375 million ordered against Meta in March after determining the company knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its...