US States File Lawsuit Against Meta for Allegedly Targeting Children on Instagram and Facebook
In a surprising development, Meta Platforms is facing a lawsuit from over 30 US States, such as California, Massachusetts, and Tennessee, among others. The lawsuit accuses Meta of utilizing features on Instagram and Facebook to entice children onto the platform and expose them to harmful content, ultimately leading to addiction. Additionally, the lawsuit claims that Meta exploited minors for its own financial gain. This legal action is part of a broader trend of increased scrutiny on social media platforms regarding their treatment of young users and the effectiveness of protective measures against harmful content.
According to a New York Times report, the lawsuit has been filed in the Northern District Court of the State of California. The case is now evaluating whether Meta, the parent company behind social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Threads and WhatsApp, violated consumer protection laws by unfairly endangering children and misleading users about the platforms’ level of security. The District of Columbia and eight other states filed individual lawsuits against Meta alleging essentially the sameallegations.
“Meta has harnessed effective and unprecedented techniques to attract, engage and ultimately ensnare youth and teenagers,” attorneys for the states said in the lawsuit. “Its motive is profit, and in an effort to maximize its financial gains, Meta has repeatedly misled the public about the significant dangers of its social media platforms.”
Meta is suing for child abuse features
Meta said in a statement that it is committed to keeping teenagers safe online and has introduced more than 30 tools to support young people and their families.
“We are disappointed that instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps used by teenagers, lawyers have chosen this path,” the company added.
The focus on the dangers and exploitation of young people on social media platforms first emerged in 2021, when former Meta employee Frances Haugen came forward as a whistleblower and highlighted in internal workings documents that the company was deliberately preying on its younger user base for profit. .
On Instagram, Haugen revealed an internal study that found evidence that many teenage girls who used the photo-sharing app were suffering from depression and anxiety over body image issues. Haugen’s testimony to Congress is cited in Tuesday’s complaint.
However, this is not Meta’s first lawsuit on the matter, and Meta is not the only company that has faced such a lawsuit. Other technology companies with products and services for children, such as Snap, TikTok and Google, are collectively facing hundreds of lawsuits alleging that these companies are responsible for minors who suffer from anxiety, depression, eating disorders and other psychological traumas that result. social media addiction. These companies have also received numerous complaints from schools on behalf of students.
The companies had said they would provide more resources to support young users online and argued that the lawsuits sought to improperly regulate content.
