Jury orders Meta to pay $375 million in New Mexico lawsuit over child sexual exploitation, user safety

[demmiblue]

Source: NBC News

A New Mexico jury on Tuesday found Meta Platforms META.O violated state law in a lawsuit brought by the state attorney general, who accused the company of misleading users about the safety of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp and of enabling child sexual exploitation on those platforms.

The jury found that Meta violated New Mexico’s consumer protection law and ordered the company to pay $375 million in civil penalties.

The jury’s decision capped a six-week trial and marked the first jury verdict on these claims against the social media company, as it faces a broader challenge over how its platforms affect young people’s mental health.

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat, accused the company of allowing predators unfettered access to underage users and connecting them with victims, often leading to real-world abuse and human trafficking.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/jury-orders-meta-pay-375-million-new-mexico-lawsuit-child-sexual-explo-rcna265002

[MLWR]

1. GOOD.

[usonian]

2. Ya beat me to it.

Also at CNN
https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/24/tech/meta-new-mexico-trial-jury-deliberation

But $375 million is lunch money to Zuck, and he's appealing the verdict.

These "tech bros" JUST DON'T CARE.

[ancianita]

3. "We respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal." a Meta spokesperson said

Hard to see how they would win an appeal given this:

The New Mexico lawsuit grew out of an undercover operation, which Torrez, a former prosecutor, and his office ran in 2023. As part of the case, investigators created accounts on Facebook and Instagram posing as users younger than 14. The accounts received sexually explicit material and were contacted by adults seeking similar content, leading to criminal charges against multiple individuals, according to Torrez’s office.

The state claims Meta told the public Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp are safe for New Mexico teens and children, while hiding the truth about how much dangerous and harmful content the company hosts. According to the state, internal company documents acknowledged problems with sexual exploitation and mental health harm. Yet the company, the state says, did not institute basic safety tools such as age verification and insisted it was safe...

In May, Judge Bryan Biedscheid, the judge who oversaw the trial, is slated to hold a bench trial on the state’s claims that Meta created a public nuisance that harmed state residents’ health and safety. The state will ask Biedscheid to direct Meta to make changes to its platforms to bring them in line with state law.

[oasis]

4. Stick it to the irresponsible, money hungry dolts.