Lawsuit against Meta in New Mexico: Demands for changes, damages and the threat of withdrawal

The trial is the second step in the process: in March, a jury determined that Meta violated consumer protection laws by making a misleading representation about the safety of using Facebook and Instagram for minors. As a result, she was ordered to pay compensation in the amount of 375 million dollars.

The court is now examining whether meta activity constitutes a “public nuisance” according to local law – a determination that may allow for broad regulatory measures, including changing the way the platforms operate.

The lawsuit seeks to compel the company to make substantial changes, including verifying the age of users, changing the algorithm so that it displays higher quality content for minors, and canceling automatic activation and infinite scrolling.

Meta claims on the other hand that it has already made significant changes to protect minors, and that the requirements presented to it are “impossible for technological implementation”. According to the company, such steps may even lead to its withdrawal from New Mexico.

In addition, the state is considering demanding compensation of up to 3.7 billion dollars to finance a mental health program for teenagers over 15 years, a claim Meta rejects completely.

At the same time, more than 40 states in the US and more than 1,300 school districts are conducting similar proceedings against the social network companies on the grounds of intentional harm to young people.