Meta faces trial over claims it designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children

Oakland, United States. Meta Platforms faced trial on Tuesday over allegations by 29 US states that it deliberately designed Facebook and Instagram to keep children engaged, causing harm to young users and misleading consumers about platform safety.

The states are seeking potentially tens or hundreds of billions of dollars in penalties, as well as changes to Meta’s business practices.

States’ allegations

Four lead states — California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey — accuse Meta of designing Facebook and Instagram to hook young users, contributing to anxiety, depression and suicide.

The states also allege that Meta violated federal law by improperly collecting and using children’s personal data while they used its platforms.

Megan O’Neill, a deputy attorney general for California, told the eight-person jury that Meta’s business model was to “hook the users, hold them for as long as they can, harvest their data, and then hide the truth from the public.”

“It worked especially well for kids,” she added. “Meta needed kids, and it needed to reassure the people who cared about those kids that the kids are safe.”

Trial and potential penalties

The jury is expected to issue an advisory verdict, while US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will determine Meta’s liability.

If Rogers finds Meta liable, she could impose civil penalties and order changes to Facebook and Instagram.

Meta’s response

Meta’s lawyers are expected to argue that the company has made significant efforts to protect children online. Meta has said it did not make misleading statements about safety and that the states failed to show that their residents were harmed.

Meta co-founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram chief Adam Mosseri are expected to testify. The trial is scheduled to last six weeks.