A New Mexico court has ordered Meta to pay $375 million (approximately £279 million) after a jury ruled that the company knowingly misled users about child safety across its platforms — Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
The verdict found that Meta was aware that children were being exposed to harmful sexual content and were coming into contact with potential predators on its platforms, yet failed to take adequate steps to prevent it.
Evidence presented during the trial included internal Meta documents showing the company had prior knowledge of the dangers its platforms posed to minors. Research cited in court revealed that 16% of Instagram users had encountered unwanted sexual images or messages.
The $375 million judgement is one of the largest child safety verdicts against a major tech company to date, and advocates say it sends a clear signal that platforms will be held accountable for the safety of younger users.
