New Mexico court orders Meta to pay additional $567M in child safety case
A New Mexico judge has ordered Meta to pay an additional $567 million in fines, bringing the total penalty to $942 million regarding social media harms to children. The court also mandated platform changes, including restricting Like counts for minors and limiting push notifications and usage time.
Why it matters
This ruling represents a significant legal escalation in holding social media companies accountable for the mental health impacts of their platforms on youth.
A New Mexico Court judge on Thursday ordered Meta to pay a fine of $567 million, on top of the $375 million levied in March , in a case regarding social media harms and addiction. This brings the total fines the company has to pay to $942 million.
The court also ordered Meta to make changes to its platforms: it wants the company to removing Like counts, and only showing such metrics to children under 18 only with approval from a parent or a guardian. Push notifications to underaged users are also to be paused between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m, and their usage should be limited to 90 hours a month, which amounts to roughly three hours per day.
“Significant numbers of people in New Mexico experience harm from Meta’s products due to risks of sexual exploitation, interference with education, and adverse mental health outcomes,” the order said.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in