Legal Battle Begins: Meta Denies Attempting to Induce Children's Use, Emphasizes Existing Protective Measures

A landmark lawsuit against Meta (META-US), the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, for allegedly harming teenagers' mental health, began on Tuesday (October 18) in a U.S. federal court in California. The case, led by California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, involves 29 states in total, accusing Meta of intentionally designing addictive features that cause anxiety, depression, and even suicide among teenagers.

Prosecution: Intentionally Trapping Teens, Harvesting Data, and Hiding the Truth

In her opening statement, California Deputy Attorney General Megan O'Neill criticized Meta's business model as 'trapping users, keeping them as long as possible, harvesting data, and hiding the truth from the public.' She pointed out that Meta studies children's brain responses to stimuli, lists 'teen usage time' as a goal, and internal emails even compared Instagram to 'drugs,' viewing the company as a 'salesperson.' O'Neill emphasized that Meta, for profit, falsely assures the public of platform safety while exploiting children's psychological vulnerabilities for gain.

Defense: Committed to Improving Services, Denies Product Danger

Meta's lawyer Paul Schmidt argued that research does not show a clear link between social media use and teenage health damage. He emphasized that CEO Mark Zuckerberg is committed to improving services rather than creating dangers, stating, 'If users don't like this service, Meta doesn't think the company can develop well.'

Meta spokesperson Stephanie Otway issued a statement accusing the states of making 'grossly disproportionate' financial compensation demands and failing to prove any specific case of misdirection, attempting to punish Meta for industry-wide challenges (such as age verification).

Former Engineer Testifies: Safety Not a Priority

The case's first witness, former Meta safety engineer Arturo Bejar, testified that the company long followed the motto 'move fast and break things,' taking a 'don't ask, don't tell' approach to users under 13. He bluntly stated that products like Reels, in their initial launch, did not consider safety at all.

Litigation Impact and Penalty Amounts

If Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers rules against Meta, the company could face massive fines. While the legal maximum fine could reach $1.4 trillion (close to Meta's market value), the plaintiff alliance is currently seeking approximately $200 billion in penalties. Additionally, the states demand that Meta fundamentally reform its platform, including removing 'infinite scrolling' and 'like' features, and enforcing age restrictions.

Outside the court, several parents who lost children held up photos in protest. Mary Rodee, whose son Riley committed suicide after online grooming, expressed her grief, stating that this was not an 'impulsive suicide' but a 'foreseeable result in a system that protects corporations over children.'

This trial is expected to last six weeks and could be a turning point in the development of social media regulations.