4 US states sue Meta, seeking $1.4 trillion over alleged harm to minors

Meta Platforms stated in court filings today that four states are seeking $1.4 trillion in penalties, alleging that Meta designed its Facebook and Instagram platforms to be addictive for young users and misled the public about their safety.

Reuters reported that Meta presented this figure in response to filings by state attorneys general on how penalties should be calculated if they win at trial.

This figure, previously undisclosed, is close to Meta's market capitalization of approximately $1.5 trillion. The lawsuit filed by California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey against Meta is scheduled to go to trial in Oakland, California, in August.

Meta, however, argued that this amount is entirely unsupported by evidence, stating in its filings, "Sanctions of this magnitude are unprecedented in the history of consumer protection enforcement."

Representatives for the state attorneys general did not immediately respond to requests for comment following the court submission.

The states' filings are currently sealed, but in June court proceedings, they indicated they are calculating penalties by multiplying the number of violations by the statutory penalty amount under state law. The states stated that the number of violations is based on an estimated number of adolescents and young users affected by Meta's conduct.

A total of 29 states have sued Meta in federal court, with most alleging that Meta violated the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act by collecting children's data without proper parental consent.

US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will preside over the trial in August, which will address all claims brought under that act, as well as the allegations by the four states that Meta misled about platform safety and violated state consumer protection laws.

Meta denies these allegations, claiming that the attorneys general have not provided evidence that Meta misled consumers regarding platform addictiveness, as "social media addiction" is not an established mental health disorder, and therefore, statements that "Meta's platforms are not addictive" are not false.

An additional 14 states have filed lawsuits under their respective state laws, which will be heard in a separate trial scheduled for February of next year.

Meta, Snapchat and its parent company Snap Inc., YouTube and its parent company Alphabet Inc., and TikTok and its parent company ByteDance are facing thousands of lawsuits in federal and state courts, accused of intentionally designing platforms with addictive features for children and adolescents, exacerbating a mental health crisis. (Compiled by Li Peishan) 0707

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