GoKawiilWhat just happened? Meta's defeat in New Mexico's landmark child-safety case is going to cost the company close to one billion dollars. A state judge has ordered Facebook's parent to place $567 million into a fund addressing harm its platforms caused young people. That's on top of the $375 million civil penalty imposed in March, meaning its total bill now stands at $942 million.
The decision resolves the second phase of New Mexico's case against Meta. Following a three-week trial, Judge Bryan Biedscheid concluded that Facebook and Instagram created a public nuisance and significantly contributed to the state's youth mental health crisis. WhatsApp was excluded because the court found that it didn't contribute to the nuisance.
A jury in the first phase found Meta liable for 75,000 violations of New Mexico's Unfair Practices Act. Jurors concluded that the company misled consumers about platform safety and exposed children to harm, resulting in the maximum $5,000 penalty for each violation.
Of the new award, $420 million will fund treatment services for young people in New Mexico. The remaining $147 million will pay for prevention, screening, referrals, and other programs over five years.
Meta must also limit New Mexico users under 18 to a combined 90 hours per month across Facebook and Instagram. Most push notifications will be disabled overnight and during school hours, while Like counts will be hidden by default unless a parent approves otherwise.
Instagram accounts belonging to minors must remain private by default. Meta also can't recommend children's accounts to adults or allow unconnected adults to message them. The company must prevent sexualized interactions involving minors and its AI chatbots, strengthen the review of child sexual abuse reports, and submit compliance updates twice each year.
The order requires Meta to improve its AI age-assurance systems, develop a model for detecting under-13s within two years, and seek proof of age from suspected child users. It must also create a portal allowing schools to flag underage accounts and delete personal data collected from confirmed under-13s. Meta recently expanded AI facial analysis designed to identify users lying about their age.
Biedscheid rejected Meta's Section 230 defense because the state challenged product design rather than third-party content. However, he declined to order changes to infinite scroll, autoplay, and recommendation algorithms due to free-speech, technical, and competitive concerns.
Meta previously warned that the proposed requirements could force Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp out of New Mexico. The company says it will appeal the order.
"We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts," Meta said.
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