META FACES MAJOR U.S CHILD SAFETY TRIAL – 29 states accuse Meta of designing platforms to hook children
Meta is facing one of the biggest legal challenges yet over the impact of social media on children and teenagers. Twenty-nine US states are suing the tech giant, accusing it of designing Facebook and Instagram features to keep young users hooked while contributing to anxiety, depression and other mental health problems.
Four lead states — California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey — opened their case in federal court in Oakland. California Attorney General Rob Bonta accused Meta of acting unlawfully and said children “deserve to be safe” online.
The states are seeking potentially billions of dollars in penalties and changes to how Meta operates.
Meta is also facing thousands of other lawsuits from states, local authorities, schools and individuals over alleged harm to young users. Other companies facing similar legal action include TikTok owner ByteDance, Snapchat and YouTube parent Alphabet, putting the wider social media industry under growing scrutiny.
