Meta ordered by New Mexico judge to pay $567 million in landmark child safety case

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

See more from the L.A.Times in Google Search.

Set us as preferred In another major blow to Meta, a New Mexico judge ordered the social media giant pay $567 million and take actions to make its platform safer for young people.The latest penalty is in addition to the $375 million that a New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay after finding that the company violated state consumer protection laws for enabling the mental health harms and sexual exploitation of adolescents.Business Meta and Alphabet, the parent company of YouTube, saw their stock price drop this week after a jury found the companies liable for the design and operations of their platforms, harming a young user.The case stems from a lawsuit that New Mexico Atty.

Gen.Raúl Torrez filed against Meta in 2023.

The lawsuit accused the California social media company of failing to remove child sexual abuse material and prioritizing engagement and ad revenue over safety.The ruling adds to the growing scrutiny Meta and other platforms are facing over how social media affects the mental health and safety of young people.In March, a Los Angeles jury found that Meta-owned Instagram and Google-owned YouTube were negligent for designing addictive features that harmed the mental health of a California woman.

Another youth safety case involving Meta is also headed to trial this month in California.In the New Mexico case, the First Judicial Court in Santa Fe determined that Meta’s conduct created a “public nuisance” and ordered the company to create a fund to remedy harms.“Meta’s platforms create a public nuisance because their purpose and effect is to optimize engagement, including in ways that are detrimental to teenagers’ health and safety,” Judge Bryan Biedscheid wrote in the more than 60-page ruling on Thursday.The court compared Meta to a factory and child sexual exploitation and harm to pollution.Business Fr...