Meta big week in court, opening arguments in New Mexico, LA trials
This photo illustration, created in Washington DC on January 7, 2025, features an image of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and an image of the Meta logo.
Drew Angerer | AFP | Getty Images
Meta He went to court again, but this time there was only one defendant.
Opening arguments begin Monday in a high-profile lawsuit filed by the state of New Mexico challenging the case. MetaIt allegedly failed to protect apps like Facebook and Instagram from online predators targeting child users, according to the state’s attorney general, Raúl Torrez.
The lawsuit, which was first filed in 2023, alleges that Meta “directs and links users, including children, to sexually explicit, exploitative and child sexual abuse materials and facilitates human trafficking within the state.”
“What we’re actually alleging is that Meta has created a dangerous product that allows not only the targeting of children, but also their exploitation in virtual spaces and in the real world,” Torrez told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Monday. he said.
The hearing is one of several significant cases involving Meta this year that could have major impacts on the company and the social media industry more broadly. Experts said that the lawsuits filed due to claims that the products could harm users and tobacco companies’ efforts to mislead the public about their negative effects are similar to the lawsuits filed against “Big Tobacco” in the 1990s.
In January, in Los Angeles, plaintiffs filed suit against Meta, YouTube, TikTok and explode It did not publicly inform the public about the security of its social and video streaming apps, despite knowing that the designs and some features were harmful to the mental health of young users. TikTok and Snap settled with a plaintiff involved in the case before the trial began.
Opening statements in the Los Angeles trial were supposed to begin last week but were subsequently postponed. unexpected illness of the chief lawyer. A Meta spokesman said 18 jurors were incarcerated Friday afternoon and opening arguments will begin Monday. Instagram chief Adam Mosseri is scheduled to testify on Wednesday, followed by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg a week later.
Most of New Mexico’s allegations against Meta stemmed from an undercover operation conducted by the attorney general that involved the creation of a fake social media profile modeled after a 13-year-old girl. Torrez previously told CNBC that the fake social media profile was “full of images and targeted demands, and frankly, I found that shocking.”
Meta denied the allegations and said in various statements to the media that the company was “focused on demonstrating our long-standing commitment to supporting young people.”
Torrez told CNBC on Monday that Meta could face significant financial penalties, but he basically wants the company to make changes.
“We need real age verification. We need to make changes to product design so they don’t connect children to predators on the platform. We need full disclosure to make users aware of potential harm and danger,” he said.
While social media companies claim that content shared on their apps is protected under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, the overarching theme among the various lawsuits is that the tech companies are allegedly endangering young users through the design and features of their apps.
Another trial is planned to begin in the Northern District of California later this year. This federal lawsuit involves Meta, TikTok, YouTube and Snap and focuses on allegations that the companies developed flawed practices that caused teens and children to develop unhealthy and addictive behaviors.
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