Meta says its facing $1.4T in penalties in teen mental health case a sum equal to tech giants valuation
If four of the states suing Meta for allegedly fueling a teen mental health crisis prevail in their case, the company will be on the hook for a whopping $1.4 trillion in penalties, Meta says — a figure the tech giant blasted as “outlandish.”The Mark Zuckerberg-led company arrived at the gigantic sum — which is nearly as large as the company’s entire market cap — based on how the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey have argued penalties should be calculated if they win the case.The two sides are scheduled to face off in Oakland federal court on Aug.
18.“A sanction of that size has no analog in the history of consumer protection enforcement,” Meta’s attorneys wrote in the late Monday filing, adding that the states’ proposals were “unsubstantiated” and “outlandish.”A total of 29 states are attached to the lawsuit against Meta, which accuses the company of major violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.The legislation bars the collection of data from underage users without parental consent.They further allege that Facebook and Instagram were designed to be addictive to kids, causing a wave of issues ranging from anxiety and depression to self-harm and even suicide.California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey are also targeting Meta for allegedly misleading the public about safety risks.Meta, which has strenuously denied wrongdoing, said the four states’ proposed remedies go far beyond the scope of the case.
They also accuse Meta of improperly double- or even triple-counting teen users who allegedly experienced harm based on how long they use Facebook and Instagram each day.“These remedies have no basis in the record in this case, are entirely unmoored from the claimed deceptive statements or unfair practices, are based on features this Court has held are immune from liability under Section 230, and violate the legal and due process limits on the scope of [Unfair Practices Act] penaltie...