Meta Must Pay $567 Million for Damage to Children's Psyche from Facebook and Instagram

A New Mexico court has ruled that Meta must pay $567 million in compensation for the harm caused to children and teenagers by the company's two main products — Facebook and Instagram. This sum will be paid in addition to the $375 million fine the jury imposed on the company in March, writes the BBC.

The majority of the compensation — $420 million — will be allocated to aid programs for affected children and young people. The remaining funds will be used for education, including training for teachers and medical professionals, on how to counteract the harmful influence of social media on teenagers.

Judge Bryan Biedscheid also ruled that Meta must implement several additional restrictions for underage users. For example, hiding the number of "likes" from them, not sending push notifications at night and during the school day, and ensuring that algorithms do not recommend accounts of children and teenagers to adult users.

«Just as factories pollute the environment and can thereby violate a person's right to sufficiently clean air, the harm that Meta's platforms inflict on children does not remain within the platforms. This harm extends online and — perhaps even more concerningly — into the real world,» the judge noted in his decision.

«Today's court ruling is a victory for every parent who has ever worried about what social media is doing to their children, and for every child who deserves to grow up in a safer online space,» said New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torres.

Meta plans to appeal the court's decision.

«We are making every effort to ensure the safety of users on our platforms and speak openly about the difficulties we face in detecting and removing harmful content and bad actors,» the company stated.

«We remain confident in our ability to ensure the safety of teenagers online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that distort the facts,» Meta added.

New Mexico state prosecutors filed a lawsuit concerning the harm caused by Meta's products to children and teenagers in 2023. During the first phase of the case, Meta was found guilty of repeated violations of the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act, as social media algorithms effectively "directed" underage users to harmful content and dangerous contacts. The jury then imposed the maximum possible fine on the company — $375 million.

The case in New Mexico is not unique. Several dozen states have filed lawsuits against the company in federal court due to harm caused to the mental health of underage users, and eight more states have turned to their state courts. The federal case in California will begin in August.

Lawsuits against major social networks are also being filed by private individuals. In March 2026, a Los Angeles court ruled that Meta and Google must pay $6 million to a 20-year-old woman who claimed their platforms caused her depression and suicidal thoughts.

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