A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay $567 million for failing to warn the public about the dangers its platforms pose to children. This is the largest child-safety fine the company has ever faced.
Judge Bryan Biedscheid ruled Thursday that Meta operates as a “public nuisance,” comparing the company to a polluting factory: content and advertising are the product, he said, and “the psychological harm and sexual exploitation of children” is the pollution it must now clean up.
It’s the first time a social media company has been legally classified as a public nuisance in the US.
The penalty adds to an earlier $375 million judgment in the same case, bringing Meta’s total bill to $942 million.
Meta says it will appeal. A company spokesperson called the ruling wrong, adding that Meta has “been transparent about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors and harmful content” and remains confident in its record on protecting teens.
Where the Money Goes
The court ordered Meta to fund a dedicated harm-reduction program:
- $420 million toward mental health treatment linked to platform harm, including clinical and behavioral health care
- The remainder toward training teachers and health professionals to identify and respond to social media-related harm in children
Mandatory Platform Changes
Judge Biedscheid also ordered Meta to implement:
- No recommending under-18 accounts to adult users
- No adults messaging minors they aren’t already connected to
- A ban on minors sending or receiving nude images
- A one-strike removal policy for adults engaged in child exploitation
- Removal of visible “like” counts for underage users
- Blackout windows for push notifications overnight and during school hours
- A 90-hour monthly cap on combined Instagram and Facebook use for minors — about three hours a day
Throwback
New Mexico sued Meta in 2023, arguing its recommendation algorithms exposed children to sexual predators and explicit content.
An earlier phase of the trial found Meta violated the state’s consumer protection law by using those algorithms to steer young users toward harmful content.
Meta faces thousands of similar lawsuits nationwide. It already lost a case in Los Angeles this year over claims its platforms were designed to be addictive, and a separate trial brought by nearly three dozen state attorneys general over child privacy violations begins in California next week.
Former Twitter executive Bruce Daisley called the fine “a drop in the ocean” against Meta’s $61 billion in quarterly revenue, up 28% year-over-year, but said it signals growing global momentum to regulate social media’s impact on children.
Global Regulatory Pressure Is Mounting
The UK and EU are pushing similar protections around how children can be contacted or found online. The UK is going further, moving to ban under-16s from social media entirely and introducing opt-out nighttime curfews for older teens.
Former UK safeguarding minister Jess Phillips said US legal pressure on Meta could give British regulators more confidence to act without risking diplomatic fallout.
Another major trial against Meta begins in California next week.