Court Orders Meta to Pay $567M Over Youth Online Harms

A New Mexico court in Santa Fe has ordered Instagram and Facebook parent company Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people resulting from its social media platforms. The legal ruling represents another major setback for Meta, which is currently facing an avalanche of lawsuits from families of children who have been harmed by social media.^{[3][4][5][6][7][9][10]}

The financial penalty came late Thursday in the second phase of a landmark trial that the social media giant lost in March. According to the ruling from Judge Bryan Biedscheid, the bulk of the $567 million payment will be allocated toward providing treatment services for young people affected by the platforms.^{[1][2][11][12][13][14][15]}

In addition to the monetary judgment, the judge ordered Meta to build banner and informational screens across its services to clearly explain its safety and protection features. These screens must explain best practices and detail specific tools, such as mechanisms to address inappropriate comments, and Meta is required to display them regularly to its users online.^[1][8]